-NRLF 


B    3    3E7    SIS 


GIFT  OF 


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FAIR  HARVARD: 


A    STORY    OF 


AMERICAN   COLLEGE  LIFE, 


<  Quorum  cognitio  studiosis  juveuibus  si  non  maguam  utilitatem  afferet  at 
certe,  quod  magis  petimus,  bonam  voluiitatein." 


NEW  YORK: 

0.1      P  U  T  NAM    &  SON. 

LONDON:    8 .    Low,   Sox   &  M  A  R  8  T  o  N . 

1860. 


&• 


• 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  tho  year  18G9,  by 

G.  P.  PUTNAM  &  SON, 

In  the  Clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States,  for  the 
Southern  District  of  New  York. 


PREFACE. 


THIS  story,  the  product  of  hours  wrested  from  severe 
professional  labors,  the  author  offers  to  the  Public  with 
out  diffidence. 

The  opinion  of  those  friends  whose  criticism  he  most 
values,  he  has  already  taken. 

"  I  should  advise  you,"  said  one,  "to  commit  what  you 
have  written/'  (the  labor  of  some  months,)  "to  the  flames, 
or  to  the  North  River," — '  sive  flamma  sive  man  libel  Hadri- 
ano' — "and  to  throw  off  something  more  worthy  of  your 
powers. " 

"I  should  recommend  you,''  added  the  other,  "to  ap 
pend  a  tabular  view  of  the  college  studies  to  your  story,  so 
as  to  give  the  book,  at  least,  a  certain  value." 

Thus  urged,  the  author  feels  it  to  be  a  crime  to  keep  his 
work  lonprer  from  the  Public. 


438650 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.      WATERLOO i 

II.     INFERNO 25 

III.  CHRONICLES 42 

IV.  THE  STAGE 52 

V.      LE  MONDE 72 

VI.     CRICHTON 83 

VII.     PRINCJPIA 97 

VIII.      LA  BOHEME 11- 

IX.     THE  PUMP'S  TALE 132 

X.      THE  WAR  PATH 143 

XL      IN  MKMORIAM i6c 

XII.     THE  SPECTRE  STUDENTS i6S 

XIII.  THE  ROMAN  DINNER 182 

XIV.  PYRRHA 214 

XV.  ORE  ROTUNDO . .  . 228 

XVI.  TRAFALGAR.  .                  242 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEli 

XVII.  NEWPORT 256 

XVIII.  CELESTE 263 

XIX.  PAPAXTI'S 266 

XX.  OLYMPUS 288 

XXL  A  BORGIA 296 

XXII.  ALMA  VENUS 302 


FAIR  HARVARD. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Ne  pueri,  ne  tanta  ariimis  assuescite  bella." 

BOUT  six  o'clock  P.  M.  on  the  first  of  Septem 
ber,  185-,  a  large  number  of  persons  were 
collected  around  the  Delta  of  Harvard  College. 
The  walks  edging  the  green  were  thronged  with  men,  and 
the  streets  blocked  with  carriages  from  Boston  and  the 
neighboring  country. 

These  bore  a  fair  freight  of  laughing  girls,  accompanied 
by  a  chaperon  or  an  obliging  father.  Near  the  central 
point  of  the  south  side  of  the  Delta  a  barouche  was  sta 
tioned,  in  which  were  seated  two  young  ladies,  surrounded 
by  a  group  of  gentlemen. 

"Arn't  those  Sophomores  ever  coming,  Mr.  Morris? 
They  are  making  us  wait  a  long  time,"  said  one  of  the 
ladies  to  a  gentleman,  whose  air  of  sedate  superiority  pro 
claimed  him  a  Senior  of  the  college. 


Fair  Harvard. 


1  '"  there  'they1  "ate;  'MisaT  Campbell.  You  can  just  see 
them  coming  down  the  middle  walk  of  the  college  yard," 
replied  Mr.  Morris,  carefully  adjusting  a  scholarly  eyeglass. 
As  he  spoke,  a  long  line  of  young  men  became  visible 
through  the  trees,  rapidly  winding  towards  the  Green. 
Their  raiment  was  limited  to  a  shirt,  trousers,  and  an  ine 
briated  stove-pipe  hat,  on  which  the  name  of  their  class, 
185-,  was  cut  in  letters  of  appalling  magnitude.  They 
were  marching  two  and  two,  and  kept  harmonious  time  to 
the  chorus  of  "Left,  left,  left  her  far  behind  mz,"  a  strain 
heard  not  infrequently  by  the  startled  burghers  of  breezy 
Boston,  and  echoed  yearly  by  the  hills  of  Lake  Quinsiga- 
mond. 

"Isn't  this  splendid,  Nell?"  asked  a  handsome  girl  with 
a  classical  face  who  was  seated  beside  Miss  Campbell,  and 
watching  everything  with  great  interest.  And  indeed  the 
scene  was  not  without  beauty.  On  the  right  of  the  carriage, 
beyond  the  Green,  rose  the  square,  substantial  houses  of 
the  gentry  of  Cambridge,  half  hidden  among  vines  and 
shrubbery,  and  shaded  with  venerable  trees.  Towards  the 
left  could  be  seen  the  brick  walls  of  Holworthy,  one  of  the 
college  dormitories,  an  angle  of  Hollis,  or  Massachusetts, 
with  glimpses  of  the  Library  and  old  University  Building. 
The  sun  was  just  setting,  and  the  thick  trees  beyond  the 
Green  were  sifting  its  golden  sands.  The  men  crowding 
the  walks  were  all  in  high  spirits,  many  of  them  chatting 
with  the  ladies  in  the  carriages,  and  the  rest  debating  with 
each  other  with  eager  gesture. 

Among  them,  the  Seniors  and  Juniors  of  the  college  were 


Fair  Harvard.  3 

easily  distinguished,  as  they  sauntered  magnificent,  ambro 
sial,  some  whom  love  of  glory  inspired,  others  gathered  to 
witness  the  ensuing  foot-ball  game  as  a  spectacle,  and 
criticise  the  men  of  the  year  who  were  now  to  win  their 
spurs. 

' '  That  fence  is  one  of  the  goals, "  remarked  Mr.  Morris, 
pointing  to  the  wooden  bars  which  divide  from  Quincy 
Street  the  base  of  the  triangle.  "The  other  is  that  path 
which  runs  across  the  Delta  near  its  apex, — where  the 
Freshmen  are  standing.  Which  side  do  you  favor,  Miss 
Leigh  ?"  he^  added,  addressing  the  girl  seated  by  Miss 
Campbell. 

"How  young  the  Freshmen  are!"  answered  the  girl, 
looking  with  a  feeling  of  pity  at  the  body  of  young  fellows 
huddled  confusedly  together,  who  had  begun  to  pull  off 
their  coats  and  waistcoats  and  to  gird  up  their  loins,  "  I  do 
hope  they  will  beat." 

"Three  cheers  for  the  class  of '5-!"  shouts  a  sturdy 
Sophomore,  the  leader  of  that  long  column,  which,  filing 
past  Holworthy,  across  Cambridge  Street,  through  the  gate 
of  the  Delta,  has  passed  towards  its  eastern  fence,  and 
doubling  and  closing  stands  in  crowded  phalanx. 

Three  cheers  and  a  tiger  are  given  by  the  Sophs,  who 
toss  their  hats  high  in  air,  while  their  ranks,  impetuous,  yet 
disciplined,  sway,  and  distend,  and  gather. 

"Three  cheers  for  the  class  of  '5-!"  cries  a  fine  look 
ing  fellow  on  the  opposite  side,  and' three  rousing  cheers 
burst  from  the  Freshman  lines,  which  effort  of  vocal  power 


4  Fair  Harvard. 

is  chastened  with  clapping  of  hands  and  ironical  laughter 
by  the  Sophs. 

"Who  is  that  Freshman?"  asked  Miss  Campbell  of  Mr. 
Morris.  The  latter,  albeit  somwhat  annoyed  by  such  ill- 
directed  curiosity,  turned  his  eye-glass  with  difficult  courtesy 
towards  the  body  of  children. 

"  I  really  can't  tell  you,  Miss  Campbell,"  he  answered, 
' ''  I'm  not  in  the  way  of  meeting  these  young  fellows,  and 
yet,  now  I  look  at  him,  I  fancy  I've  seen  him  somewhere  ; 
why  it  must  be  young  Saulsbury ;  I  know  his  uncle  very 
well.  That  Sophomore,  the  other  champion,  is  Seaborn, 
a  Harvard  man,  and  I'm  told  a  very  good  fighter.  That 
big  fellow  near  him  is  Ned  Bilger  ;  he  is  a  rowing  man 
too  ;  and  there's  a  man  whom  I  think  you  know,  Brand- 
reth;  he  is  every  way  their  best  man,"  and  Mr.  Morris 
pointed  out  on  the  edge  of  the  Sophomore  wave  a  youth  of 
middle  height,  dark  face,  and  agile  as  a  cat. 

"  Have  you  ever  been  at  one  of  these  games  before,"  he 
continued,  turning  to  Miss  Leigh. 

"  Look,  they  have  begun,"  cries  the  girl  in  her  excite 
ment,  not  hearing  Mr.  Morris.  The  Sophomores  have  won 
the  pitch,  the  kick-off  is  theirs  ;— a  fierce  yell  :  "Are  you 

ready?" "Yes,"  is  shouted  back,  and  the  next  moment 

Seaborn  has  struck  the  ball.  It  rises  with  a  long  graceful 
curve,  and  spans  much  of  the  vacant  interval.  Before  the 
two  armies  join,  we  will  pause  a  moment  to  compare  their 
numbers  and  chances  of  success.  About  eighty  men  are 
ranged  on  each  side.  The  larger  portion  of  each  body  is 
chiefly  useful  in  giving  weight,  but  conspicuous  in  either 


Fair  Harvard.  5 

van  are  a  score  or  more  of  vigorous  young  fellows,  emu 
lous  of  fame,  on  whom  the  brunt  of  battle  is  to  fall.  The 
Sophomores  have  the  advantage  of  being  a  year  older  than 
the  Freshmen,  and  their  martial  uniform  makes. the  match 
appear  even  more  unequal.  This  causes  the  sympathies 
of  most  of  the  spectators  to  side  somewhat  unfairly  with  the 
latter,  who,  though  less  boisterous,  are  no  contemptible  op 
ponents.  The  line  of  battle  of  the  Sophomores  is  more 
extended  than  the  Freshmen's  ;  and  their  fighting  men, 
confident  of  success,  are  scattered  along  the  front.  Their 
younger  rivals  are  more  compact,  and  in  their  centre  stand 
five  or  six  of  their  best  men,  a  nucleus  around  which  the 
rest  cluster.  Conspicuous  in  this  group  is  Saulsbury,  the 
boy  whose  name  Miss  Campbell  had  asked  ;  a  fine  look 
ing  fellow,  whose  light  hair,  blue  eyes,  and  clear  skin 
prove  him  a  New  Englander,  while  his  unconscious  grace 
shows  him  an  adept  in  athletic  sports. 

"Remember,  Van  Courtland  and  Rakeman ;  we  must 
keep  together, "  says  Saulsbury,  as  the  ball  curves  towards 
them,  turning  to  two  boys  near  him,  the  one  a  handsome 
fellow  with  regular  features  and  a  sharp  New  York  accent, 
the  other  a  boy  whose  dark  eyes  and  quick  words  and 
gestures  could  belong  only  to  a  Southerner. 

' '  Bravo,  Bowyer  I"  shout  the  Freshmen,  as  a  vigorous 
kick  from  a  burly  fellow  with  a  thick  neck  and  huge  chest 
drives  the  ball  nearly  back  to  the  Sophomore  lines.  At 
the  blow  the  whole  Freshman  body,  with  loud  huzzas 
shouting  the  name  of  their  class,  rush  forward  to  meet  the 
Sophomores,  who  are  fiercely  bearing  down  upon  them, 


6  Fair  Harvard. 

yelling  wildly  and  brandishing  a  hundred  fists  in  air. 
Swiftly  each  army  spurs  itself  on.  The  ball  rises  but  twice 
more.  The  two  bodies  crush  madly  together  over  it,  and 
men  are  bowled  over,  trampled  on,  scramble  up,  thrust, 
push,  kick,  strike,  fall  and  rise  again  with  aching  joints, 
battered  noses,  and  darkened  eyes.  All  along  the  lines 
burst  shrieks  of  rage  or  shouts  of  triumph,  which  mingle 
with  the  voices  of  the  spectators,  as  with  cries  of  "  Go  in 
Freshmen/'  " Sophs,"  "  185-"  "  bravo,"  and  clapping  of 
hands,  they  urge  on  the  game. 

A  few  moments  more  and  nothing  can  be  seen  in  the 
centre  but  a  surging,  swaying  mass — though  to  the  right 
and  left,  the  skirts  of  the  fight  present  frequent  private  en 
counters,  where  more  skill  is  shown,  exchanges  are  made, 
and  men  knocked  down  with  method.  Soon  gaps  are 
seen  in  the  Freshman  lines,  as  the  Sophomore  fighting 
men  press  through  the  yielding  wings.  In  the  centre  of 
the  fight,  however,  where  the  ball  rests,  the  Freshmen  still 
hold  their  own.  Here  Saulsbury,  Bowyer,  Van  Courtland, 
and  Rakeman  are  gathered  with  the  best  men  of  the  class, 
striking  fiercely,  and  taking  blows  sullenly,  watching  their 
opportunity.  Suddenly  Bowyer  seizes  the  ball  in  his  arms, 
and  lowering  his  head  like  a  battering  ram  breaks  through 
the  weak  Sophomore  centre,  and  makes  towards  the  goal. 
With  a  loud  shout  Saulsbury  and  his  friends  press  through 
the  breach.  Bowyer  gains  but  a  few  yards  when  Seaborn 
grasps  him  by  the  shoulder.  Bowyer  hurls  the  ball  to 
wards  the  goal  and  grapples  fiercely  with  his  enemy.  The 
Sophomore  trips  him  upon  the  grass,  and  with  his  few  sup- 


Fair  Harvard.  7 

porters  delays  the  Freshmen  until  the  Sophomore  wings 
can  close  around  them.  The  plucky  young  fellows  are 
then  driven  slowly  back  to  their  main  body  with  many  re 
wards  of  merit.  The  ball  is  again  kicked  between  the  two 
lines  and  the  men  fight  fiercely  around  it.  The  Sophs 
now  use  more  skill,  and  mass  themselves  against  the  sturdy 
knot  of  men  in  the  Freshman  centre.  The  battle  hangs  in 
even  scale  a  few  seconds.  Then  the  Sophs  force  their  way 
forward  by  sheer  weight,  and  inch  by  inch  drive  the  ball 
towards  the  goal. 

"Well  done,  Saulsbury!"  murmurs  Morris,  and  "bravo!" 
shout  the  spectators,  as  suddenly,  when  the  game  seems 
lost,  the  ball  rises  once  more,  curling  back  to  the  centre  of 
the  field.  Saulsbury  has  snatched  up  the  ball  at  the  very 
goal,  and  dodging  a  fierce  blow  from  Bilger,  gained  a  ring 
ing  kick  over  the  heads  of  both  sides. 

The  ball  has  fallen  not  far  from  the  fence  where  Miss 
Campbell's  carriage  is  standing,  and  down  upon  it  sweeps 
the  rushing,  struggling  mass. 

"Isn't  this  horrible  !"  exclaims  Miss  Leigh,  her  face 
growing  very  pale  and  her  heart  beating  quick,  as  she 
watches  with  greater  earnestness  every  movement  of  the 
game.  Saulsbury  leads  the  van  of  Freshmen.  His  arms 
and  face  are  stained  with  blood.  His  right  cheek  discov 
ers  a  deep  cut  from  which  a  slender  stream  is  trickling. 
The  boy's  eyes  are  on  fire  with  excitement.  He  has 
ceased  to  feel  the  blows  that  rattle  round  his  face  and 
chest.  Through  his  veins  pours  the  fierce  delight  which 
hope  of  victory  lends  to  souls  avaricious  of  honor.  The 


8  Fair  Harvard. 

swiftest  runners  on  both  sides  arrive  first  at  the  ball,  and 
engage  each  other,  until  in  a  few  seconds  both  armies  in 
full  force  are  struggling,  pushing,  and  striking  as  before. 
The  men  as  they  again  crush  together  bear  numerous 
marks  of-their  former  encounters.  Their  hats  have  been 
exchanged  or  have  forever  vanished.  Their  shirts  are 
torn  and  checkered  with  blood  and  dirt.  Their  noses, 
mouths,  and  eyes  are  swollen  and  painted  red  or  black 
with  the  grim  pencil  of  war.  Their  shouts  and  noise  have 
ceased,  and  all  fight  with  a  sullen  rage  and  fierceness  they 
did  not  at  first  display. 

The  battle  redoubles  along  the  lines.  The  Freshmen 
are  now  driven  back  a  few  yards,  now  with  desperate  ral 
lies  force  back  their  enemies.  The  blows  echo  heavily 
from  heads  and  bodies,  and  a  low  fierce  growl  creeps  from 
the  seething  mass.  In  the  front  Saulsbury  and  his  friends 
are  fighting  in  unison,  hoping  again  for  a  favorable  chance. 
But  Janus  occasion  presents  first  his  Roman  nose,  and 
afterwards  his  nez  retrousse,  which  is  hard  to  grasp. 
The  Sophomores,  however,  are  again  fighting  without  plan. 
On  their  left  wing  Bilger  makes  a  lane  through  the  Fresh 
men,  striking  right  and  left.  In  the  middle,  Brandreth,  be 
striding  the  ball,  engages  man  after  man,  dealing  graceful 
and  vigorous  blows  on  nose,  chin,  chest,  and  ribs,  open 
ing  mouths  and  closing  eyes  in  a  most  scientific  fashion. 
On  the  right  Seaborn,  careless  of  the  ball,  has  made  a  ring 
around  him,  and  challenges  any  Freshman  to  meet  him. 
Already  four  have  been  placed  hors  de  combat  by  the  stal 
wart  boating  man.  Van  Courtland,  unable  longer  to  en- 


Fair  Harvard.  9 

dure  the  sight,  leaves  the  ball  and  his  friends  and  enters  the 
lists  against  his  stronger  but  less  agile  enemy.  It  is  soon 
obvious  that  the  Freshmen  are  being  worsted.  Yet  they 
fight  bravely  on,  and  close  their  thinned  ranks,  like  the 
Scots  around  their  king  at  Flodden.  Bowyer,  Saulsbury, 
and  Rakeman  keep  together  though  sorely  pressed.  The 
Southerner  is  at  length  led  by  his  eagerness  away  from  his 
friends  and  engages  two  men  near  the  fence.  One  of  them 
he  strikes  from  him,  and  turning  upon  the  other  with  a 
sharp  shrill  yell  deals  a  blow  with  his  clinched  hand  as 
with  a  hammer,  cutting  his  own  thumb  to  the  bone  against 
a  row  of  startled  teeth.  Before  he  can  reach  his  friends 
he  is  himself  struck  down  by  Bilger,  the  heaviest  hitter  in 
his  class,  and  led  from  the  field.  "  Poor  fellow  !"  exclaims 
Miss  Leigh,  who  has  watched  the  fate  of  the  gallant  South 
erner  with  deep  interest,  "I  hope  he  is  not  much  hurt." 
The  plucky  fellow  catches  the  remark  and  touches  his  hat 
to  the  fair  speaker  with  a  smile  of  gratitude.  The  larger 
number  of  the  Freshmen  have  now  been  knocked  down 
and  exhausted  or  disabled,  and  the  rest  are  again  forced 
back,  and  this  time  with  fatal  steadiness,  towards  the  goal. 
The  Sophomores  no  longer  look  after  the  ball,  which  is 
soon  thrust  out  a  few  paces  to  one  side  of  the  melee. 
Saulsbury  spies  it,  and  is  speeding  to  repeat  his  former  ex 
ploit,  when  he  hears  a  savage  yell  behind  him,  and  glanc 
ing  back  sees  Brandreth  running  towards  him. 

Suddenly  from  the  Freshman  lines  a  slender  young  fel 
low  springs  forward,  his  face  burning,  with  blood  about  his 
mouth  and  neck,  and  his  collar  and  scarf  streaming  behind 


10  Fair  Harvard. 

by  a  single  button.  "Stop  Hamilton/'  cries  Saulsbury, 
recognizing  a  friend  to  whom  he  had  been  introduced  the 
day  before.  The  boy,  however,  aims  two  fierce  blows  at  his 
unequal  opponent.  The  blows  spend  themselves  upon 
the  air,  but  not  so  the  clean  straight  return  by  which  the 
Freshman  is  struck  far  to  the  rear. 

"Go  down,  go  down/'  shouts  Brandreth  to  Saulsbury, 
who  has  now  reached  him,  and  with  this  command  he 
delivers  his  left  straight  at  the  other's  face.  Saulsbury, 
however,  proves  himself  no  novice.  Guarding  the  blow 
with  his  right  he  counters  with  great  effect,  sealing  up  the 
right  eye  of  the  Soph  for  many  a  day.  Brandreth  falls 
back  a  few  feet  and  the  Freshman  hears  a  clapping  of 
hands  from  the  men  and  ladies  near.  Yet  his  time  is 
short  for  the  enjoyment  of  such  sweet  music.  Another 
second  and  Brandreth,  the  most  graceful,  finished,  and 
plucky  sparrer  of  his  class  is  again  before  him,  and  very 
ugly  and  unpromising  is  the  glare  of  his  surviving  eye. 
Again  Brandreth  levels  his  left,  flinging  himself  lightly  for 
wards.  Saulsbury  guards  his  head  with  his  right  and 
counters  as  before.  This  is  the  last  act  of  which  he 
is  conscious  for  some  minutes.  Brandreth  has  himself 
cross-countered,  throwing  his  head  to  the  left  and  bringing 
in  his  right  with  the  whole  weight  of  his  body.  Saulsbury 's 
head  forthwith  reposes  upon  the  lap  of  earth,  his  heels 
twinkle  in  the  setting  sun,  his  nose  assumes  colossal  pro 
portions,  and  the  world  grows  black  before  his  face.  Pres 
ently  a  bystander  sets  him  upon  his  legs  and  he  gazes 
stupidly  around  him.  The  game  is  over.  The  ball  has 


Fair  Harvard.  11 

been  driven  home  by  the  Sophs,  and  the  men  are  separat 
ing  for  the  next  encounter. 

During  the  respite  that  follows  the  first  game  you  may 
distinguish  among  a  group  of  Freshmen  a  wild-visaged, 
rough-hewn  man  in  a  state  of  fierce  excitement.  This 
gentleman  is  Mr.  Timothy  Gowan,  who  was  born,  and  as 
he  terms  it,  "raised,"  in  what  was  then  the  beautiful  village 
of  Galena.  He  had  supposed  that  he  had  in  his  youth 
seen  something  of  rough  life.  Scenes  in  Western  bar- 
rooms,  where  the  knife  and  pistol  played  conspicuous  roles, 
were  not  unfamiliar  to  his  boyish  years.  On  more  than 
one  occasion  he  had  beheld  eyes  gouged  out  or  noses  slit 
at  cheerful  social  gatherings  over  the  convivial  punch.  He 
had  imagined,  however,  that  when  he  came  among  the 
more  polished  denizens  of  the  East,  he  should  find  the 
manners  of  society  assume  a  gentler  tone.  He  had,  indeed, 
been  informed  by  his  friends  on  the  previous  evening,  that 
his  class  was  about  to  engage  in  a  little  game  familiarly 
known  as  foot-ball. 

This  consisted,  as  they  kindly  explained  to  him,  in 
tracking,  following,  kicking,  or  otherwise  impelling  an  in 
flated  globe  of  rubber  cloth  towards  a  fixed  mark  or  goal. 
Custom,  they  added,  had  made  it  incumbent  upon  him  as 
a  classmate  to  take  part  in  the  sport.  Mr.  Gowan  had 
cheerfully  consented,  and  had  flung  himself  among  the 
foremost  in  the  rush  after  the  ball.  Now  boxing  is  an  art, 
but  little  practised  upon  the  prairies,  and  the  surprise  of 
Mr.  Gowan  was  therefore  great,  while  plunging  with  obliging 
ardor  into  the  spirit  of  the  game,  to  find  some  twenty  yel- 


12  Fair  Harvard.  • 

ling  monsters  leaping  upon  him,  still  greater  to  find  him 
self  instantaneously  knocked  down,  and,  as  he  is  now  ex 
pressing  it  to  some  comrades  in  misery,  "run  over, 
trampled  on,  and  made  a  door-mat  of  by  a  hundred  hogs. '  •' 
''I'd  give,"  he  mutters  hoarsely  to  his  friends,  rolling 
fiercely  his  empurpled  eyes,  "I'd  give  ten  years  of  my 
life  to  feel  a  bowie  knife  in  my  fist." 

The  two  following  games  were  similar,  but  shorter,  as 
the  Freshmen  had  been  seriously  weakened  by  the  previous 
struggle.  Their  leader,  Saulsbury,  could  now  do  little  more 
than  walk  through  the  game.  The  Southerner  Rake- 
man,  though  he  had  insisted  on  returning  to  the  field,  was 
almost  disabled.  Van  Courtland  was  exhausted  by  his  long 
encounter  with  Seaborn,  on  whom  he  had  left  many  marks, 
but  who  had  taken  terrible  revenge  on  the  slighter  frame  of 
the  young  New  Yorker.  Others  of  their  best  fighting  men 
had  suffered  equally,  and  though  the  class  upon  the 
whole  did  well,  they  were  speedily  beaten. 

The  Sophomore  and  Freshman  classes  alone  took  part 
in  the  first  three  games,  but  now  the  latter  were  recruited 
from  the  Juniors,  while  the  Seniors  reinforced  the  Sophs. 
The  two  sides  were  thus  very  evenly  matched,  and  the  last 
three  games  were  sharply  contested.  It  was  not  considered 
a  point  of  honor  for  the  two  upper  classes  to  engage  in  the 
fight,  yet  the  men  who  had  earned  a  reputation  for  pluck 
and  skill,  commonly  put  in  an  appearance  on  the  field. 
Thrice  the  combat  was  renewed  with  varying  fortune, 
whereof  it  chiefly  concerns  us  to  know  that  our  young 
friend  Saulsbury  had  sufficiently  recovered  himself  to  be 


Fair  Harvard.  13 

twice  knocked  down  by  Seniors  of  mark.  — By  the  end  of 
the  last  game  it  had  grown  dark.  The  spectators  dispersed, 
the  carriages  drove  away,  and  among  them  Miss  Camp 
bell's  barouche  whirled  off  to  town,  where  it  unloaded  its 
precious  freight.  Meanwhile  each  class  had  formed  in  a 
ring  and  was  singing,  "Auld  Lang  Syne."  The  men 
then  broke  up  in  groups  and  went  off  in  various  moods, 
exultant,  lugubrious,  hilarious,  or  philosophic.  The 
Seniors-  to  play  billiards,  to  their  club  rooms,  or  to  the 
pleasures  of  Boston ;  the  Sophomores  to  break  windows 
and  to  wanton  through  the  town  ;  some  to  their  rooms  ; 
others  to  the  wine-shop  of  Lyons ;  all  to  talk  over  the  for 
tunes  and  wounds  of  the  six  games. 

We  would  now  beg  the  reader  to  transport  himself  for  a 
few  seconds  to  a  pleasant  house  in  Walnut  Street,  Salem. 
Let  him  enter  a  genial  dining-room,  where  he  will  find 
an  elderly  gentleman,  his  wife,  and  a  young  girl. 

A  servant  has  just  brought  tea,  and  a  gentle  domestic 
tinge,  adapted  to  the  place  and  hour,  pervades  the  conversa 
tion  of  the  family.  "  Henry,"  muses  the  lady,  "I  wonder 
what  Wentworth  is  doing  now  !  He  must  be  studying 
those  mathematics  he  used  to  find  so  hard.  Are  you 
sure  he  got  that  parcel  and  those  blankets  I  sent  him  ? 
His  room  must  be  very  damp."  "Yes,  my  dear,' 
replies  Mr.  Saulsbury,  "I  have  no  doubt  of  it.  The  ex 
pressman  was  told  to  be  particularly  careful. "  "I  am 
sure  he  will  study  himself  to  death,"  continues  Mrs.  Sauls- 
bury.  ' '  I  hope  you  write  to  him  not  to  overwork  himself. " 
'What  a  goosey  you  are,  mamma,"  says  Miss  Saulsbury 


14  Fair  Harvard. 

a  lady  of  fifteen,  with  a  laugh.  "I  am  sure  Mr.  Morris, 
whom  we  met  last  summer  at  Newport,  did  not  look  as  if 
he  injured  himself  by  hard  study."  "I  will  write  if  I 
apprehend  any  danger,  my  dear/'  says  Mr.  Saulsbury,  a 
merry  twinkle  in  his  eye. 

While  his  family  were  thus  debating  his  condition,  Went- 
worth  Saulsbury  had  joined  his  friend  Hamilton,  an  ac 
quaintance  of  yesterday,  indeed,  but  regarded  already  with 
something  very  like  attachment,  and  was  reposing  his 
battered  frame,  stretched  at  length  in  a  long  easy-chair  in  the 
latter's  room.  Hamilton  had  taken  up  his  quarters — and 
very  comfortable  ones  they  were — in  the  third  story  of  Har 
vard  Block.  In  the  middle  of  the  room  stood  a  broad 
oaken  study  table — near  the  fireplace  a  Yankee  rocking- 
chair,  and  a  lounge— on  the  mantel  a  couple  of  stone  jars 
for  tobacco,  and  half  a  dozen  briar-wood  pipes.  A  pair  of 
dumb-bells,  and  a  formidable  Indian  club  lurked  in  one 
corner.  On  the  table  lay  Felton's  Selections,  a  volume  of 
Livy,  Whately's  Evidences,  Mr.  Cuthbert  Bede's  celebrated 
history  of  Verdant  Green,  divers  numbers  of  the  Harvard 
Magazine,  and  the  Atlantic  Monthly  for  September. 

Saulsbury,  after  resting  a  few  moments,  jumped  up  and 
looked  in  the  glass. 

"  One  might  play  Banquo's  ghost  with  great  success  to 
night,  Hamilton/'  he  remarked  after  surveying  his  wounds. 

"  Your  nose  has  become  a  burning  and  a  shining  light 
within  the  last  few  hours,"  returned  his  friend.  "  Here's 
some  water. " 

1 '  I  wonder  who  that  man  was,  who  keeled  me  over  so 


Fair  Harvard.  15 

neatly!  I  never  dropt  so  quickly  in  my  life,"  con 
tinued  Saulsbury,  washing  his  face,  and  bathing  his  bumps, 
with  lively  pleasure. 

"I  heard  some  one  say  his  name  was  Brandreth,  and 
that  he  was  the  best  boxer  of  his  class." 

"He  used  me  up  very  effectually,"  said  Saulsbury.  "I 
know  so  much  about  him." 

"Come  in/'  shouted  Hamilton,  in  answer  to  a  tumultu 
ous  knocking,  at  which  the  door  was  flung  open,  and  half  a 
dozen  Freshmen  entered. 

"  How  are  you,  fellows  !"  cried  Hamilton.  "Sit  down, 
and  have  a  pipe  !" 

The  boys  seated  themselves  after  the  manner  of  contor 
tionists  and  college  youth,  all  but  one  named  Sweatrame, 
who,  being  a  little  overcome  by  the  libations  with  which  he 
had  crowned  his  efforts  in  the  field,  delivered  a  short  but 
impressive  speech  to  his  host.  Among  the  Freshmen  was 
Bowyer,  of  whom  we  had  a  glimpse  on  the  Deita,  Rake- 
man,  and  a  boy  with  red  cheeks,  named  Robin  Ayres, 
whose  birthplace  the  city  of  Nashua  boasted  itself  to  be. 

"We  have  just  come  from  Holworthy,"  said  Bowyer, 
"some  Sophs  tried  to  haze  one  of  our  men,  and  we 
had  a  little  scrimmage ;  but  sneaky  Brown  came  up  and 
dispersed  us,  and  told  us  to  go  to  our  rooms." 

"  By  Jove  !"  exclaimed  Hamilton,  "I  wish  I  had  been 
there.  Was  any  one  hit  ?" 

"No,"  answered  Bowyer,  "and  it's  no  use  to  go  now, 
All  the  Faculty  are  out.  The  yard  swarms  with  Tutors  and 
Proctors. " 


16  Fair  Harvard. 

"They've  caught  two  or  three  Sophs  breaking  win 
dows,"  piped  Ayres.  "  Hollo,  Saulsbury!"  said  Rakeman, 
interrupting  him,  "  what  a  crack  you've  got  on  your  nose. 
You  are  cut  up  worse  than  Van  Courtland.  Did  you  see 
what  a  mouse  he  caught  under  his  left  eye?  By  the  way, 
where  was  your  friend  Dummer  to-night?"  he  added, 
turning  to  Bowyer. 

' '  He  was  taken  suddenly  sick  at  the  five  o'clock  recita 
tion/'  answered  Bowyer,  who  was  in  his  division,  at  which 
reply  all  the  students  laughed. 

"  Men  say  there  hasn't  been  so  good  fighting  for  a 
long  time,"  said  Rakeman. 

' '  I  don't  believe  there  will  be  many  men  at  prayers  to 
morrow,  "  remarked  Ayres  after  a  pause.  ' '  I  havn't  looked 
at  my  geometry,  and  I  recite  at  eight." 

"  Fellows,"  said  Bowyer,  "we  ought  to  get  up  a  boat 
club  this  term.  There  are  two  or  three  months  we  ought 
not  to  lose.  Suppose  we  have  a  meeting  here,  to-night. 
Hamilton,  you  call  the  meeting  to  order."  "  Pooh,  pooh, 
old  salt/'  objected  Rakeman,  "  wait  a  few  days.  We  can't 
row  to-night." 

"Order!"  at  the  same  time  interjected  Sweatrame, 
whose  imagination  had  been  rendered  more  discursive  by  a 
bottle  of  ale.  "  Gentlemen,  what  is  order  ?  '  'Tis  a  way  we 
have  at  old  Harvard.  'Tis  a  way  we  have  at  old  Harvard. ' 
Gentlemen,  I'm  going  home.  I'm  not — oh  no — -nothing 
of  the  kind — I  assure  you.  But  I'm  going  home.  'Rol 
ling  home,  rolling  home,  rolling  home  '  " — and  with  this 
Sweatrame  emerged  from  the  room  propped  by  his  led 


Fair  Harvard.  17 

captain  Ayres,  who,  as  a  tug-boat  convoys  through  devious 
channels  some  richly  freighted  galleon,  guided  him  to  his 
room. 

"  Come,  fellows,  let's  pud  along!"  urged  Rakeman,  after 
a  long  chat  in  his  friend's  room. 

"Oh,  'tis  up  the  river  and  down  the  creek." 

Singing  this  stirring  strain  of  the  South,  as  they  sprang 
down  the  stairs,  the  party  lingered  a  few  moments  on  the 
sidewalk. 

' '  I  say,  fellows, "  cried  Rakeman, ' '  come  to  Lyons'. 
He's  open — there's  a  light  in  his  old  den,"  and  thither,  im 
pelled  by  sympathetic  thirst,  his  friends  followed  him. 

The  ' '  Lyon's  den "  combined  in  a  long,  low,  smoky 
room  the  varied  attractions  of  wine-shop,  lunch-counter, 
oyster-cellar  and  coffee-house.  A  bar  ran  along  the  side 
opposite  the  entrance,  surmounted  on  its  left  flank  by  a 
glass  covered  case  sacred  to  cakes  and  tarts  of  price.  By 
the  side  of  this  a  humble  trencher  offered  doughnuts, 
sausages,  and  hard  boiled  eggs  to  the  cravings  of  car  dri 
vers  who  in  five  minutes  must  appease  the  hunger  ofa  day. 
On  the  right  of  the  bar  as  you  enter  stood  six  boxes  a  yard 
or  more  square,  closed  against  the  vulgar  eye  by  a  dingy 
curtain.  On  its  left  a  door  opened  into  a  billiard  room, 
which  was  still  filled  with  men  of  the  various  classes. 

"Who  is  that?"  whispered  Hamilton  to  Saulsbury, 
pointing  to  our  acquaintance  Morris,  who  was  leaning 
against  the  side  of  the  doorway  nearer  the  bar,  and  who  nod 
ded  kindly  to  our  hero. 

"That  is  Morris,"  replied  Saulsbury,  "a  Senior." 


18  Fair  Harvard. 

"That  is  one  of  the  men  who  knocked  me  down  in  the 
last  game,"  said  Hamilton,  with  a  natural  feeling  of  pride. 

' '  What'll  ye  have,  fellows  ?"  asked  Rakeman,  who,  with 
his  friends,  had  crowded  into  one  of  the  boxes.  ''Hollo, 
there  are  some  Freshmen,"  cried  a  voice  from  the  billiard 
room,  which  sent  a  thrill  of  recognition  through  Sauls- 
bury 's  nose.  "Suppose  we  make  them  treat  us,"  and  out 
from  the  room  poured  half  a  dozen  men,  headed  by  Brand- 
reth. 

"How  are  you  Brandreth  ?"  said  Rakeman,  nodding  to 
the  Sophomores.  "What'll  ye  have,  fellows?"  he  added, 
to  the  increased  astonishment  of  Hamilton,  who,  thinking 
deeds  of  valor  were  called  for,  had  instinctively  doubled  up 
his  arm.  Hamilton's  arm,  when  extended,  measured 
eleven  inches,  and  when  doubled  was  increased  in  size  by 
a  full  half  inch.  But  behind  his  arm  ruled  a  soul  athirst 
for  glory,  which  in  the  late  fights  had  made  him  covet  and 
win  the  honor  of  being  thrice  knocked  down  by  the  ablest 
sparrers.  His  ambition  still  unsatisfied,  he  now  again 
doubled  his  arm  to  achieve  greater  fame  ;  and  lowered  it 
reluctantly  at  the  lack  of  occasion. 

The  Sophs  soon  returned  to  their  billiards,  and  the 
Freshmen  laughed  and  told  stories  together  an  hour  or 
more. 

"Suppose  we  go  back  to  my  room,"  Hamilton  at  length 
said  to  Saulsbury.  " I  am  all  used  up." 

"So  am  I,"  replied  Saulsbury,  and  taking  Hamilton's 
arm,  he  bade  his  friends  good-night  and  issued  into  Har 
vard  Square.  It  had  now  grown  late,  and  the  old 


Fair  Harvard.  19 

square  was  lying  fast  asleep  under  the  shadow  of  the  huge 
elm  which  rises  from  its  centre. 

Early  on  the  morrow,  however,  when  the  town  here 
first  awakes  to  life's  fitful  fever,  the  square  will  wear  a  dif 
ferent  aspect.  The  two  druggists  will  then  brandish  their 
rival  pestles  ;  the  milliner  ply  her  pretty  care  ;  the  cars  roll 
along  the  street.  Soon  the  courtly  barber,  manhood's 
midwife,  will  draw  his  obstetric  razor;  inquiring  students 
will  throng  the  University  Bookstore  ;  bespattered  drivers 
will  urge  their  lumbering  oxen,  squealing  pigs,  or  tangen 
tial  sheep  with  blows  and  ejaculatory  prayers  towards  fra 
grant  Brighton.  Now  everything  is  buried  in  slumber,  and 
the  town  pump  is  nodding  over  its  trough,  like  a  parson 
asleep  in  his  pulpit. 

"  Suppose  we  take  a  walk,  instead  of  going  to  your 
rooms, "  suggested  Saulsbury.  ' '  That  cellar  was  very  close, " 
and  at  this  the  two  boys  strolled  along  the  path  running 
around  the  college  yard. 

The  sight  of  the  classical  grounds,  rich  with  the  memo 
ries  of  the  past  and  the  hopes  of  the  future,  touched  the 
minds  of  the  young  fellows  with  a  pleasant  melancholy. 

"What  a  beautiful  place  this  is  !"  mused  Saulsbury,  turn 
ing  to  his  friend,  as,  leaning  on  the  old  fence,  they  surveyed 
the  Green  and  the  shadows  thrown  by  the  graceful  elms. 

"What  a  pleasant  time  we  shall  have  here  the  next  four 
years,"  remarked  Hamilton  ;  "  I  don't  wonder  men  speak 
of  their  college  days  with  such  fervor." 

"What  a  fine  class  we  have,"  said  Saulsbury,  as  they 


20  Fair  Harvard. 

walked  on.  <;I  heard  a  Junior  say  that  next  to  his  class, 
it  was  the  finest  class  in  college. " 

"I  hope,  Saulsbury,  that  we  shall  have  the  right  sort  of 
class  feeling,  and  that  we  shan't  be  split  up  into  cliques. 
We  haven't  many  Boston  men.  I  heard  a  man  say  that 
they  always  made  a  division  in  a  class,  that  they  were  good 
fellows,  but  cliquey.  I  remember  when  I  was  a  sub- 
Freshman  how  I  used  to  look  forward  to  class  feeling.  I 
thought  how  pleasant  it  must  be  to  know  a  hundred  men, 
with  all  of  whom  you  could  thoroughly  sympathize." 

4 '  What  strange  ideas  we  have  of  college  life,  when  we 
are  at  school,"  said  Saulsbury.  "  If  we  had  only  kept  a 
diary  of  our  thoughts  then,  how  absurd  it  would  seem  now, 
and  yet  we  are  the  same  persons  now  as  then. " 

"I  am  going  to  make  it  a  point  myself/'  continued 
Hamilton,  "to  call  on  every  man  in  the  class,  and  to 
know  them  all  well." 

1 '  I  heard  Morris  say  last  summer,  Hamilton,  that  the 
knowledge  of  character  you  acquire  in  college,  is  worth 
more  than  all  you  learn  out  of  books. " 

"I  wonder  who  will  be  our  first  scholar  !  You,  Sauls- 
bury,  stood  first  at  Salem.  The  men  from  Exeter  and  the 
Boston  Latin  School  seem  to  be  the  best  fitted.  When  I 
left  school,  my  teacher  told  me  to  make  a  system  for  study 
ing.  He  said  that  you  could  never  learn  anything  with 
out  a  system.  I  am  going  to  set  apart  certain  hours  for 
work  and  to  '  sport  my  oak. ' " 

' '  If  you  stand  high  the  first  few  months,  Hamilton,  I've 
heard  that  it  is  easy  enough  to  keep  a  good  rank  the  rest 


Fair  Harvard.  21 

of  the  course.  They  get  used  to  marking  you  high.  I'm 
going  to  throw  myself  into  beating  and  sparring  and  that 
sort  of  thing  as  much  as  possible.  I  heard  a  Senior  say 
that  he  would  rather  be  stroke  of  the  Harvard  boat,  than 
the  first  scholar  of  his  class. " 

"I  don't  quite  agree  with  that,"  objected  Hamilton, 
after  due  deliberation,  and  somewhat  startled  by  his  own 
boldness ;  "it  seems  to  me  that  the  first  object  of  a  man  at 
college  should  be  to  be  a  good  scholar.  I  should  like  to 
be  stroke  of  the  Harvard,  but  of  the  two  I  should  prefer  to 
stand  at  the  head  of  the  class,  I  think. " 

"Well,  perhaps  you  are  right,  old  man,"  rejoined  his 
friend,  "I  am  going  to  study  hard  too,  but  I  am  not  go 
ing  to  be  a  dig." 

As  the  young  men  walked  on,  their  conversation  grew 
more  confidential.  They  talked  of  their  school-days — 
distant  theme !  They  alluded  to  their  families  with  careless 
anecdote.  They  hinted  at  the  tender  passion  from  whose 
sweet  slavery,  they  owned,  they  had  not  been  altogether 
free.  Now  of  course  they  had  outgrown  such  pleasures, 
and  their  minds  were  filled  with  sterner  thoughts. 

Growing  more  open,  they  discovered  the  ambitions  and 
generous  aims  that,  under  the  blase  manner  which  one 
loves  to  see  a  college  boy  affect,  lurk  hidden  but  none  the 
less  strong.  There  is,  indeed,  something  intoxicating  in 
the  first  draughts  of  college  life.  Then  suddenly  a  boy 
sees  within  his  reach,  all  the  pleasures  of  freedom  with 
none  of  its  responsibilities.  The  memories  of  his  home 
are  fresh  and  beautiful  around  him,  and  life  is  what  sweet 


22  Fair  Harvard. 

remembrance  and  proud  hope  paint  it.  Every  college 
boy,  in  his  heart,  believes  in-himself  and  in  the  world,  and 
thinks  that  a  noble  career  lies  open  before  him,  if  he  will 
but  fairly  struggle  for  it.  Such  beliefs  and  feelings  are 
the  source  of  whatever  is  great  and  worthy  in  the  world,  and 
he  who  sneers  at  them,  is  but  a  shallow  cynic.  Golden 
dreams  and  bright  ideals  of  youth  !  who  could  have  the 
heart  to  dispel  them  ?  Fools  !  who  with  a  touch  of 
the  world's  wand  would  change  the  rainbow  into  a  few 
drops  of  water.  These  dreams  are  the  realities  of  life. 
''The  truths  we  live  to  learn,"  the  mean  passions  of  the 
market,  of  the  pulpit,  of  the  court,  these  are  spectral  far 
more  than  the  illusions  whose  place  they  usurp. 

The  pleasure  of  boyhood,  says  some  one,  is  home  ;  of 
youth,  friendship ;  and  of  manhood,  love.  Perhaps  the 
purest  and  most  generous  of  these  pleasures  is  friendship. 
This,  under  the  genial  influence  of  a  college  atmosphere, 
grows  with  a  swiftness  and  strength  elsewhere  unknown, 
and  the  two  boys,  after  a  short  hour's  stroll,  feel  that  they 
are  already  familiar  friends. 

' '  Good  night,  old  man, "  said  Saulsbury,  as,  returning 
they  reached  the  door  of  Harvard  Block.  ' '  I'm  going 
with  your  permission  to  call  you  by  your  first  name  after 
this, "he  added,  and  taking  leave  of  his  friend  walked  to 
Linden  Street,  and  was  soon  in  his  room  in  the  second 
story  of  Danforth's.  Saulsbury  lighted  the  gas,  and  pro 
ceeded  to  take  another  look  at  his  nose,  which  he  surveyed 
with  great  satisfaction  for  some  moments.  He  then  threw 


Fair  Harvard.  23 

himself  upon  the  sofa  and  strove  to  rearrange  the  universe 
which  the  events  of  the  day  had  thrown  into  confusion. 

' '  I  think  I  will  write  a  letter  to  mother, "  he  said  after 
a  vain  attempt,  pleased  with  the  humor  of  making  his 
mother  a  party  to  the  dissipation  of  sitting  up  until  one 
o'clock. 

' '  Dear  mother, "  he  then  wrote, '  '1  have  now  been  here 
five  days,  but  I  have  been  too  busy  to  write  to  any  one. 
I  like  college  immensely,  and  have  got  a  very  pleasant 
room.  Your  box  came  safely  with  the  comforters  and 
blankets.  As  the  thermometer  now  stands  at  80  °  in  the 
shade,  I  shall  not  need  any  more  blankets  at  present,  in 
fact  if  you  have  a  spare  refrigerator  I  wish  you  would 
send  it  down  to  me.  I  am  working  hard  and  making  a 
great  many  friends.  I  am  going  to  make  it  one  of  my 
objects  in  college  to  study  character.  We  had  several  foot 
ball  games  to  day  between  the  different  classes,  and  our 
class,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  was  beaten.  Please  give  my  love 
to  father  and  Mary,  and  believe  me  your  devoted  son, 

WENTWOFTH  SAULSBURY.  " 

His  letter  finished,  Saulsbury  slowly  undressed  himself 
and  found  that  he  had  already  grown  stiff  about  the  neck 
and  shoulders.  As  his  head  touched  the  pillow  there 
passed  before  his  eyes  a  picture  of  his  home,  his  father, 
mother,  and  pretty  sister.  Then  came  a  feeling  as  of  a 
multitude  of  men  rushing  over  him,  followed  by  a  herd  of 


24  Fair  Harvard. 

bisons.  Then  all  things  seemed  mixed  confusedly,  save 
his  nose,  which  remained  fixed  and  increased  in  magni 
tude  until  it  reached  the  size  of  a  mountain  beneath  which 
our  hero  was  soon  buried  in  slumber. 


CHAPTER  I  I. 

"Di,  quibus  inperium  est  animarum,  Umbraeque  silentes, 
Et  Chaos,  et  Phlegethon,  loca  nocte  tacentia  late, 
Sit  inibi  fas  audita  loqui ;  sit  numme  vestro 
Pandere  res  alta  terra  et  caligine  mersas." 

FTER  the  severe  intellectual  labors  of  the  day  it 
is  a  not  infrequent  custom  of  the  ingenuous 
youth  of  Harvard  to  refresh  the  weary  mind 
with  convivial  ale,  the  social  oyster,  jolly  songs,  and  conver 
sation  upon  topics  of  less  profundity  than  those  that 
usually  occupy  the  thoughts  of  young  truth-seekers.  The 
day  before  Junior  Exhibition  Saulsbury  found  Ayres'  card 
upon  his  table,  inviting  him  to  meet  a  few  fellows  at  his 
room  that  evening  at  eight  o'clock.  Thinking  that  it 
would  be  a  pleasant  party,  our  hero  decided  to  go,  and  af 
ter  supper,  to  pass  away  the  intermediate  time,  sauntered 
towards  the  Post-office,  as  the  custom  is,  and  thence  into 
' '  Lyon's  "  to  have  a  game  of  billiards.  Morris,  whom  he 
found  there,  with  great  condescension  invited  him  to  play. 
Wentworth  succeeded  in  beating  his  venerable  friend,  who 
allowed  him  but  fifty  points,  in  two  games  in  succession. 
In  capital  spirits  he  then  walked  to  Harvard  Block,  hol- 
looed  to  Hamilton,  who  ran  down  stairs  to  meet  him,  and 


26  Fair  Harvard. 

the  two  thence  strolled  towards  No.  i  Holworthy,  where 
Ayres,  who  occupied  the  position  of  Tutor's  Freshman, 
lived  and  sang. 

"By  the  way,  Lewis/'  asked  Saulsbury,  as  they  neared 
the  room,  ''have  you  been  up  to  get  your  marks  for  last 
month  ?  What  were  they  ?" 

' '  I  got  eight  in  everything  except  Greek. " 
"What  did  you  get  in  that ?     I  thought  Greek  was  your 
strong  point/' 

"Two  fifths  of  one,"  replied  Hamilton  with  a  sickly 
smile,  "and  I  only  made  tsvo  mistakes  during  the  whole 
month.  One  day  the  tutor  asked  me,  'What  is  the  point 
in  that  sentence  ?'  I  told  him  what  I  thought  was  the  point. 
'That is  incorrect/  said  he;  'the  next;'  and  he  'deaded' 
half  a  dozen  men.  At  length  Hayward  said  he  didn't  see 
any  point.  'That  is  correct/  said  the  tutor,  'there  is  no 

point ! '  " 

"What  was  the  other?"  asked  Saulsbury  with  a  laugh. 

"The  tutor  asked  me  why  fig-trees  grew  in  Lesbos. 
I  told  him  I  supposed  they  were  imported  from  Asia 
Minor.  'That  is  incorrect/  said  he;  'the  next/  and  he 
'deaded'  half  the  division  until  he  came  to  Gowan,  who 
said  he  did  not  know.  'That  is  correct/  said  the  tutor, 
'they  are  indigenous  to  the  soil.'  Gowan  got  eight  that 
month,  and  I  got  two  fifths  of  one." 

"I  can  sympathize  with  you,  old  man,"  said  Saulsbury  ; 
"what  mark  do  you  think  I  got  in  Latin— four— the  same 
mark  as  Sweatrame,  who  does  not  know  the  difference 
between  subject  and  predicate.  I  used  to  learn  every  lesson 


Fair  Harvard.  27 

almost  by  heart,  and  to  write  out  a  translation  of  it. 
'Sneaky'  must  have  thought  that  I  used  a  'pony/  and 
marked  me  down.  He  is  just  the  kind  of  man  to' mark 
you  from  what  he  supposes  your  moral  character  to  be. 
There  s  some  romance  in  your  mark.  I'm  not  going  to 
look  at  my  Latin  again  this  term,  and  then  I  think  I 
shall  get  good  marks. " 

"Come  fellows,"  cried  Ayres,  whose  room  they  had 
now  reached,  -don't  talk  'shop/  «  and,  as  his  friends  en 
tered,  he  threw  his  geometry  carelessly  into  a  corner  of  the 
room.  Like  many  boys,  the  warbler,  though  a  fair  schol 
ar,  tried  to  avoid  a  reputation  for  studying  hard,  and 
wished  to  be  thought  to  recite  from  inspiration.  "Tell 
me,  Wentworth,"  continued  Ayres,  "  is  it  true  that  Sweat- 
rame  was  again  blackballed  at  the  last  meeting  of  the  Hu 
ron  Boat  Club.  I  wasn't  there  myself.  I  heard  some 
one  say  that  you  blackballed  him,  Lewis.  Don't  you  like 
him  ?" 

"No,"  replied  Hamilton.  "  I  don't  like  him,  though 
no  one  has  a  right  to  say  how  I  voted.  I  think  he  has  a 
bad  influence  on  the  class,  which  we  ought  to  counter 
act." 

"  It  is  a  hard  punishment,"  said  Ayres ';  ' '  I  had  myself 
rather  stand  at  the  foot  of  the  rank  list,  than  be  black 
balled  at  our  boat  club." 

"  Hush  !  Talk  of  the  Devil,"  said  Saulsbury,  as  some 
one  knocked  at  the  door,  which  opened  and  let  in  Bowyer 
and  Sweatrarne  engaged  in  earnest  debate. 


28  Fair  Harvard. 

"I  think  he  is  a  scrub,"  urged  Sweatrame,  "he  dresses 
like  a  scrub,  and  seems  to  be  as  poor  as  a  rat." 

"He  seems  to  me  to  be  a  very  good  fellow,"  objected 
Bowyer.  "He  fought  well  at  the  foot-ball  games.  I 
think  you  might  call  him  a  'dig/  perhaps,  but  not  a 
scrub.  He  talks  and  acts  like  a  gentleman." 

"About  whom  are  you  talking?"  asked  Ayres,  who 
caught  with  eagerness  anything  affecting  the  social  position 
of  a  classmate. 

"  Hayward,"  answered  Bowyer.  "  Sweatrame  says  he  is 
a  scrub."  The  conversation  was  here  interrupted  by  the 
stirring  ballad  of  "The  Bold  Gallantee,"  which  gave  notice 
of  the  expected  presence  of  Rakeman  the  haughty  South- 
ton. 

"Sweatrame,"  cried  Rakeman,  as  he  opened  the  door, 
"  have  you  heard  my  new  conundrum  ?" 

•'  No,"  replied  the  former. 

"  Which  of  the  Grecian  heroes  do  you  most  resemble?" 

* '  I  give  it  up. " 

"Ajax,  sold!" 

' '  Sweatrame  says  Hayward  is  a  scrub, "  said  Hamilton, 
to  the  new  comer.  ' '  He  seems  to  me  to  be  one  of  the 
best  men  in  the  class." 

"Scrub!"  returned  Rakeman  warmly,  "I  reckon  he 
doesn't  know  anything  about  him.  He  is  a  capital  fellow. 
He  rooms  in  my  entry,  and  translates  my  Felton  for  me 
every  evening.  That  Dummer  whom  I  saw  you  with  this 
morning,  Sweatrame,  seems  to  me  to  be  a  scrub.  He 


Fair  Harvard.  29 

wears  a  diamond  ring,  and  asks  you  how  much  you  think 
it  costs  and  that  sort  of  thing." 

"Dummer  is  one  of  the  richest  men  in  the  class/' 
said  Sweatrame,  reddening;  "he  'cuts'  half  the  men  in 
it." 

"  He  must  be  very  sharp,"  responded  Rakeman  ;"  if  he 
didn't  cut  them,  they'd  'cut'  him." 

"I  dont  believe  in  calling  a  classmate  a  scrub,"  broke 
in  Saulsbury ; "  some  of  you  fellows  call  half  the  class 
scrubs — many  of  them  as  good  fellows  every  way  as  any 
men  in  it." 

"I  saw  Van  Courtland,  Robin,  as  I  was  coining  here," 
remarked  Bowyer  to  his  host  after  a  short  silence,"  and 
told  him  you  were  going  to  have  some  fellows  in  your 
room.  I  dare  say  hell  drop  in."  A  smile  of  pleasure  lit 
up  the  face  of  the  warbler  at  the  thought  of  so  great  a  swell 
as  Van  Courtland  dropping  into  his  room  familiarly.  Ris 
ing  he  then  opened  a  bed-room  door  and  out  marched  a 
dozen  bottles  of  ale,  and  with  them  a  Dutch  cheese  made 
its  phlegmatic  appearance. 

"Come,  fellows.  Have  a  smoke,"  said  Ayres,  after 
they  had  well  eaten,  and  passed  round  some  briarwood 
pipes.  Cigars  Freshmen  rarely  smoke,  both  on  account 
of  economy,  and  because,  shrewd  fellows,  they  wish  life  to 
hold  some  pleasures  in  reserve. 

' '  I'm  afraid  some  Soph  will  throw  a  brickbat  through 
the  window.  Dummer  had  one  thrown  into  his  room  the 
other  night,"  remarked  the  host  a  few  moments  later,  and 
jumping  up,  he  bolted  his  heavy  wooden  shutters  with 


30  Fair  Harvard. 

great  care.  While  thus  fortifying  himself  a  light  step  was 
heard  in  the  entry,  and  a  graceful  young  fellow  dressed 
with  taste  entered  the  room. 

"  How  are  you  Van?"  cried  Rakeman  and  the  rest  of 
the  boys,  and  a  dish  of  oysters  and  a  glass  of  ale  were 
offered  to  the  new  comer,  who  was  no  less  a  person  than 
our  old  acquaintance  Mr.  Schuyier  Van  Courtland  of  New 
York.  Van,  as  his  friends  now  called  him,  was  born  at 
Albany,  in  the  old  manor  house,  the  home  of  colonial  tra 
ditions.  He  had  passed  a  year  at  Vevay,  and  a  year  or 
more  at  Paris,  and  had  seen  something  of  New  York  so 
ciety,  in  which  his  mother  had  been  a  belle.  His  exclu- 
siveness  made  him  disliked  by  many  of  his  classmates,  but 
his  engaging  manners  and  vast  knowledge  of  the  world 
gave  him  great  prestige.  Among  college  boys,  indeed,  a 
knowledge  of  the  world  is  more  prized  than  a  large  arm, 
and  after  that  nothing  can  be  said. 

"  Van/'  remarked  Rakeman  when  the  former  had  fin 
ished  eating  his  oysters,  "you're a  plucky  fellow  to  wear  a 
beaver.  Didn't  you  hear  how  they  treated  Dummer  the  other 
day  ?  He  wore  a  beaver  to  recitation  ;  and  in  the  evening 
six  men  with  masks  came  into  his  room  :  first  they  placed 
a  chair  on  the  table  :  then  on  the  chair  they  placed  his 
new  hat;  and  at  the  words  one,  two,  three,  they  made 
him  mount  the  table  and  sit  on  his  hat.  'Smile,  now,' 
said  one  of  the  men,  whom  Dummer  thinks  was  Brand- 
reth/and  say  that  you  like  it,'  and  Dummer  was  obliged 
to  smile  and  thank  the  men  for  their  kindness." 

"There    are    Freshmen    and    Freshmen,"    said    Van 


Fair  Harvard.  31 

"and  this  one,  prefers  that  his  hat  should  sit  on  him, 
rather  than  the  reverse. " 

"Will  you  not  have  a  cigar,  Van/'  asked  Sweatrame, 
pulling  out  half  a  dozen  from  his  pocket,  and  offering  him 
one. 

"Thank  you,"  replied  Van,  blowing  a  ring  from  his 
pipe.  "I  assure  you  I  never  smoke."  Two  or  three  of 
the  men,  however,  accepted  Sweatrame's  preferred  cigars 
to  the  injury  of  their  host's  amour  propre. 

"They  are  'hazing'  our  men  very  badly,"  said  Sauls- 
bury  shortly.  ' '  They  have  begun  at  the  first  letter,  I  hear, 
and  are  going  through  us  alphabetically.  After  they  had 
made  Dummer  sit  on  his  hat,  they  ordered  him  to  bring  up 
a  pail  of  water,  and  put  his  head  in  it." 

"Yes,"  added  Ayres,  "and  a  Soph  found  one  of  Dum- 
mer's  old  razors  and  made  him  shave  off  half  his  mous 
tache,  and  told  him  that  if  he  shaved  off  the  other  half,  the 
Med.  Fac.  would  make  a  note  of  it. " 

"It's  rough  to  be  ' hazed '  by  such  a  'scrubby '  class," 
muttered  Rakeman.  "There  arn't  more  than  a  dozen 
'  white '  men  in  it.  Come  fellows,  let's  liquor  up,  Bowyer, 
let  me  fill  your  glass.  Here's  to  ye." 

"I  have  been  training,"  remarked  the  latter,  draining 
his  glass,  { '  and  have  drunk  nothing  but  ale,  and  eaten 
nothing  but  raw  beef  for  three  days." 

' '  You  must  be  as  strong  as  a  moose.  How  much  does 
your  arm  measure  now,  old  man  ?"  asked  Ayres,  who  was 
a  great  admirer  of  his  aquatic  friend. 


32  Fair  Harvard. 

"Thirteen  inches  and  a  half.  I  hope  to  get  it  up  to 
fourteen,  in  a  month,  by  working  hard. " 

"Bravo,  Ned  !"  cried  Rakeman,  we  shall  have  you  in  the 
Harvard  next  year.  Suppose  we  make  each  man  sing 
a  song  in  turn.  Ayres,  you  begin. "  The  warbler  offered 
much  coy  denial,  but  at  length  started  the  melody  of 
"  Fair  Harvard." 

"No  heel-taps  I"  then  cried  Rakeman,  rapping  on  the 
table  with  a  poker,  and  all  the  glasses  were  drained,  when 
Rakeman  himself  began  the  song,  with  the  original  chorus. 

"  'Tis  a  way  we  have  at  old  Harvard." 

This  song,  the  tune  of  which  is  the  same  as  that  of  the 
favorite  Oxford  song  with  the  chorus, 

"  'Tis  a  way  we  have  in  the  'Versity," 

Is  learnt  by  each  Freshman  the  day  after  he  arrives 
at  Harvard,  and  sung  with  startling  energy  every  day,  dur 
ing  his  first  term.  This,  more  than  any  one  thing,  enables 
a  Freshman  to  make  real  the  illusion  that  he  is  an  old 
member  of  the  college,  and  versed  in  all  its  devious  ways. 

"Ned,"  asked  Rakeman,  turning  to  Bowyer  after  the 
circle  of  singers  had  been  completed,  "why  do  you  look 
so  solemn  ?  What  are  you  winking  at  with  your  left  eye? 
You're  thinking  of  something  wrong." 

"A  terrible  thing  happened  to-day,"  responded  the  child 
of  Neptune,  an  expression  of  horror  creeping  over  his  face, 
"As  we  were  coming  into  the  Huron  Boat  House,  this 
morning,  I  flung  a  boat-hook  carelessly  into  a  beam,  as 
I  thought,  when  snap — I  heard  a  slight  crack,  and  looking 


Fair  Harvard.  33 

up,  saw  a  hole  as  large  as  your  little  finger  in  the  bottom 
of  the  Harvard  Boat. "  A  shudder  passed  over  the  faces  of 
all  the  men  present,  at  the  news  of  the  catastrophe. 

"I  don't  wonder  you  look  grave,"  said  Wentworth,  at 
length,  ''what  did  you  do?" 

"  I  went  up  at  once  to  see  Bilger  and  Seaborn,  and  of 
fered  of  course  to  buy  a  new  boat  or  do  anything  they 
wished.  They  were  very  kind,  and  said  they  thought  that 
the  boat  could  be  mended,  without  doubt. " 

"Come  fellows,  fill  up,"  exclaimed  Rakeman,  whose 
spirits  could  not  long  endure  a  curb  ;  "to-morrow's  Exhi 
bition  day,  and  there  are  no  recitations,  you  know." 

"What  a  jolly  time  we  had  last  night,  did  we  not,  Rake  ?" 
remarked  Sweatrame,  filling  his  glass  ;  ' '  we  wentas  '  supes ' 
behind  the  scenes  at  the  theatre.  You  don't  know,  Ham 
ilton,  what  a  charming  danseuse  there  was  there.  She 
had  a  foot  that  would  drive  you  crazy." 

Sweatrame  loved  to  make  parade  of  his  dissipation.  He 
had  lived  all  his  life  in  New  York,  and  was  considered  a  great 
connoisseur  in  wine  and  women.  This  excited  great  re 
spect  for  him  among  the  fast  men  of  the  class,  but  caused 
him  to  be  hated  with  equal  fervor  by  Hamilton  and  his 
friends.  Hamilton,  indeed,  used  often  to  discuss  the  ques 
tion  with  Saulsbury,  how  so  dissipated  a  man  as  Sweatrame 
could  keep  alive,  and  express  his  belief  that  some  fine  morn 
ing  he  would  suffer  the  fate  of  spontaneous  combustion. 

"  Suppose  we  go  round  to  Dummer's  to-night,"  sug 
gested  Van,  turning  to  Hamilton,  who,  he  saw,  was  an- 


34  Fair  Harvard. 

noyed  by  Sweatrame's  topic  of  conversation.  ' '  The  Sophs 
have  threatened  to  '  haze  '  him  again." 

"They  will  be  sure  to  do  so  if  they  hear  of  men  collect 
ing  to  defend  him,"  interposed  Ayres. 

"So  Dummer  thinks,  Ayres,  and  that's  the  humor  of 
the  thing.  He  hates  to  have  us  in  his  room,  but  can't  help 
trying  to  appear  grateful  to  men  who  are  risking  their  eyes 
and  noses  for  him.  The  night  after  he  was 'hazed, 'a 
small  party  of  us  sat  up  in  his  room  with  him  until  two 
o'clock.  One  of  the  guard  got  'sprung/ and  insisted  on 
sleeping  in  Dummer's  bed  all  night,  so  that  Dummer  had 
to  sleep  on  the  floor." 

"I  don't  see  what  the  Sophs  could  do  worse,"  pondered 
Ayres. 

"  Brother  Saulsbury's  up  in  a  pear  tree," 

began  Rakeman,  beating  time  with  his  poker,  when  a 
stealthy  step  was  heard  in  the  entry,  followed  by  a  low 
knock.  Rakeman  at  once  grasped  his  poker  and  placed 
himself  en  garde  before  the  door. 

' '  It  may  be  '  sneaky '  Brown, "  the  owner  of  the  room 
whispered,  at  which  each  man  seized  a  bottle  and  held  it 
behind  his  back,  while  Wentworth  turned  down  the  gas. 
Again  the  knock  was  heard,  and  the  door  then  slowly 
began  to  open. 

"You  don't  catch  this  'possum  asleep  !"  yelled  the 
knight  of  the  poker,  slamming  the  door  to  with  a  violent 
lunge.  "We're  ready  for  you.  '5-  forever  !"  A  sound  ex 
pressing  unmitigated  disgust  followed  outside  the  door, 


Fair  Harvard.  35 

which  issued  from  a  mouth  evidently  underneath  a  banged 
nose. 

"I'm  Mr.  Brown/'  growled  out  a  voice,  at  which  Rake- 
man  opened  the  door,  and  the  unhealthy  face  of  the  tutor 
peered  through  it.  "I  beg  your  pardon,  sir,"  said  Rake- 
man  bowing  to  his  instructor.  "I  thought  you  were  the 
class  of  '5-.  They  have  been  '  hazing '  us  very  badly  of  late. " 

"I  thought/'  meanly  insinuated  the  tutor,  whose  satis 
faction  at  the  above  apology  was  by  no  means  intense — "  I 
thought  I  heard  the  sound  of  glasses  in  your  room." 

"'I  think  it  was  some  Sophs  breaking  windows  in 
Stoughton/'  kindly  suggested  Rakeman  ;  "I  heard  the 
same  noise  myself.  We  have  ourselves  got  together  to 
prevent  their  '  hazing '  Mr.  Ayres. " 

"You  must  make  less  noise,  gentlemen,"  the  tutor  con 
cluded  with  saying,  and  walked  away,  wondering  why 
each  man  carried  his  right  hand  in  so  strained  a  posture. 

"I  did  not  at  first  recognize  'sneaky'  in  his  dis 
guise,"  said  Rakeman,  after  the  tutor  had  gone.  "He 
has  on  a  new  hat.  He  must  have  bought  that  with  the 
fine  he  levied  on  me  yesterday,  for  cutting  my  name  on  the 
settee." 

"Come,  fellows,  we  must  be  oif,"  urged  Van.  "We 
shall  get  Ayres  into  trouble,  if  we  stay  any  longer. " 

The  men  at  this  all  took  their  leave,  except  Saulsbury 
and  Hamilton,  who  remained  a  few  minutes  ;  and  then 
bidding  their  host  good-night  walked  together  towards  the 
latter's  room. 

"I  don't  much  like  this   sort   of  thing,"   said    Lewis, 


36  Fair  Harvard. 

thoughtfully,  after  a  silence  of  some  minutes.  "  I  know 
fellows  call  you  '  spooney '  for  saying  so  ;  but  the  men 
drink,  and  swear,  and  talk  in  such  a  vulgar  way  often.  If 
a  man  would  not  only  not  do  any  of  these  things,  but 
would  set  himself  strongly  against  them,  he  would  have  a 
great  influence  for  good  on  the  class. " 

"I  hate  to  think  how  unpopular  he  would  become, 
Lewis,  though  he  would  exert  a  fine  influence,  I  don't 
doubt.  It  is  cowardly,  too,  to  be  deterred  from  anything 
by  a  fear  of  unpopularity." 

"Will  you  not  agree  with  me,  Wentworth,"  said  Lewis, 
stopping  and  looking  earnestly  at  his  friend,  ' '  whenever 
men  speak  of  low  and  vulgar  subjects,  either  to  leave  them, 
or  to  make  them  talk  of  something  else.  I  am  going  to 
do  so  myself. " 

"I  don't  know  of  anything  so  difficult,  Lewis,  but  I'll 
do  my  best.  Good-night.  I  shall  see  you  in  the  morn 
ing."  Wentworth  left  his  companion  at  Harvard  Block 
and  walked  towards  his  room,  thinking  of  what  Lewis  had 
said,  and  revolving  many  virtuous  resolutions  in  his  mind. 

"That  man,"  he  said  to  himself,  "is  the  only  man  I 
have  ever  known  who  unites  the  purity  of  a  woman  with 
perfect  manliness  and  pluck. " 

"That's  the  fellow,"  whispered  some  one  as  Wentworth 
turned  into  Linden  Street,  and  at  the  words,  four  men  in 
masks  sprang  out  upon  him,  from  the  doorway  of  the  cor 
ner  house.  Saulsbury  was  no  coward,  but  the  darkness 
and  the  surprise  for  a  moment  unnerved  him.  He,  how 
ever,  struck  one  fair  blow  at  the  man  just  in  front  of  him. 


Fair  Harvard.  37 

The  man  stooped,  the  blow  passed  over  his  head,  and  the 
next  moment  Wentworth  was  seized  around  the  waist,  and 
thrown ;  two  hands  grasped  his  throat ;  his  own  were  tied 
behind  his  back,  his  eyes  bandaged,  and  his  mouth  gagged. 
Our  hero  exerted  all  his  strength  in  a  desperate  struggle  to 
gain  his  feet. 

"  How  the  child  wriggles,"  muttered  one  of  the  masks, 
and  gave  Wentworth  a  blow  with  the  flat  of  his  hand,  which 
made  him  writhe  in  a  frenzy  of  rage. 

"  Lift  him,"  now  whispered  one  of  the  men,  and  Went 
worth  was  placed  in  a  vehicle  which  drove  rapidly  off. 

He  lay  still,  though  burning  with  anger.  ' '  I'd  give  my 
life,"  he  thought,  "for  one  blow  at  that  coward  who  struck 
me."  They  drove  rapidly  for  several  minutes,  until  at 
length  the  carriage  stopped,  and  Wentworth  was  taken  out, 
turned  round  half  a  dozen  times,  and  led  up  a  flight  of 
stairs  into  a  room. 

"  Mr.  President,  we  have  brought  you  the  culprit, "  said 
one  of  the  men  who  held  Saulsbury. 

"Remove  the  band,"  commanded  a  voice  resembling 
the  angry  mew  of  a  cat.  The  band  was  removed  and 
our  hero  glanced  around  him  not  without  a  feeling  of 
terror.  The  walls  of  the  room  in  which  he  found  himself 
were  painted  with  revolting  figures,  representing  the  growth 
of  Disease.  In  the  rear  a  table  was  placed,  on  the  centre 
of  which  rested  a  large  Bible  presented  to  Harvard  by  the 
pious  youth  of  Yale  College  in  expectation  of  a  similar  gift 
in  return.  Behind  the  Bible  stood  a  box  of  medical  in- 


38  Fair  Harvard. 

struments  with  a  letter  from  the  Emperor  Nicholas.  The 
front  of  the  table  discovered  bunches  of  skeleton  keys ;  a 
few  delicate  Freshman  moustaches,  with  the  names  of 
their  former  possessors  ;  rich  folds  of  hairs  marked,  ' '  the 
wig  of  Tutor  Jones,  captured  Oct.  3rd,  185-;  "  and  a  bil 
let  with  cords  twisted  around  its  handle. 

The  Bible  itself  sustained  a  punch  bowl  of  singular 
shape,  adorned  with  the  motto,  "Satano  duce,  nildesper- 
andum,"  and  two  huge  clubs,  rough  with  letters  and  figures. 
The  words  "  Hell  Fire  Club  "  on  the  larger  of  these  would 
have  recalled  to  the  antiquary  the  deeds  of  iniquity  by 
which  that  society  had  justified  its  name.  Carved  upon 
this  sole  memorial  of  a  famous  brotherhood  were  the  ini 
tials  of  men  distinguished  in  the  law  and  ministry,  who  in 
their  youth  had  furnished  employment  to  the  professions 
which  in  their  advanced  years  had  supported  them.  On 
the  smaller  club  was  the  mysterious  name,  "  Thundering 
Bolus."  This  weapon,  in  former  times  swung  by  the  arm 
of  the  bravest  Senior  in  the  College,  for  many  years  struck 
dismay  into  the  hearts  of  hostile  villagers,  trusting  in  their 
numbers. 

Little  desire,  however,  had  our  hero  to  examine  these  or 
the  other  objects  of  interest  which  the  chamber  held.  His 
eyes  were  fastened  on  the  scene  before  him.  Directly  in 
front  of  him  sat  a  hideous  monster,  with  horns  projecting 
from  his  forehead,  and  his  dress  ablaze  with  flames.  Next 
the  Devil  to  the  right,  was  a  creature  whose  features  were 
nearly  eaten  off  by  a  cancer,  while  on  the  left  leered  a  with- 


Fair  Harvard.  39 

ered  hag.  Flanking  these  three  stood  a  dozen  wretches, 
each  incarnating  some  malady. 

Between  Wentworth  and  the  ' '  Leeches  and  Doctors, "  for 
such  was  the  title  these  horrors  wore  on  their  breasts,  was  a 
table  covered  with  a  sheet,  QJI  one  end  of  which  stood  a 
small  brasier  with  scalpels,  pincers,  and  other  instruments 
around  it.  Above,  at  the  centre  of  the  wall,  before  Went 
worth,  was  hung  a  strip  of  black  cloth,  on  which  were  writ 
ten  in  scarlet  six  letters.  The  sight  of  these  at  once  riveted 
our  hero's  eyes,  drove  a  cold  iron  rod  down  his  spine,  and 
made  him  tremble  with  fear.  These  six  letters  were 
MED.  FAC. 

"  Remove  the  gag,"  ordered  the  Devil,  and  Wentworth's 
tongue  was  set  free. 

' '  Where's  that  d coward  who  struck  me  ?"  he  ex 
claimed.  ' '  I  dare " 

"Burn  the  profane  fellow !  dissolve  him,  flay  him,  dis- 

i 

sect  him,"  and  other  suggestions  interrupted  his  words. 

"  Gag  the  rebel !"  screeched  the  Devil.  ' '  Delilah  1"  he 
added,  "chasten  the  lawlessness  of  this  young  Samson." 

At  this,  Wentworth  was  forced  upon  the  table  and  the 
hag  shuffled  up  to  him,  and  slowly  pulled  from  his  head 
twenty-seven  hairs  and  burnt  them  in  the  brasier. 

"  Remember,"  the  Devil  warned  him,  as  the  gag  was 
again  removed  and  Wentworth  set  on  his  feet,  "that  you 
are  in  the  august  presence  of  the  Medical  Faculty  of  Har 
vard  University.  You  are  charged,"  he  continued  sol 
emnly,  ' '  with  having  spoken  lightly  of  the  godly  society 
of  the  'Med.  Fac.5  Is  the  accusation  true  ?" 


40  Fair  Harvard. 

"I  think  you  have  done  a  great  many  mean  acts,"  mut 
tered  Wentworth,  losing  all  prudence  in  his  anger. 

"He  blasphemes  against  the  Med.  Fac.  I"  shrieked  a 
dozen  voices,  mingled  with  groans. 

" Brother Plummer,"  commenced  the  Devil,  "read  the 
punishment  decreed  against  one  who  offends  against  the 
majesty  of  the  Med.  Fac." 

"Whoever,"  began  a  deep  voice  behind  our  hero,  "shall 
speak  evil  against  the  Medical  Faculty  of  Harvard  Uni 
versity  shall  receive  the  punishment  of  air,  fire,  water,  and 
earth,  and  the  purification  of  assafoetida  and  brimstone." 
"Such  are  the  words  of  holy  writ,"  added  the  Devil. 
"Your  own  good  compels  us  to  punish  you,  with  whatever 
pain  to  ourselves.  Let  the  law  be  executed,"  he  con 
cluded,  and  waved  his  sceptre,  at  which  sign  each  monster 
removed  a  leg  or  arm  and  brandished  it  over  his  head. 

Wentworth  was  then  blindfolded,  led  into  the  open  air 
and  placed  in  a  blanket.  Were  we  writing  a  romance,  we 
should  not  allow  our  hero  to  be  tossed  in  a  blanket,  but 
the  spirit  of  truth,  which  rules  all  histories,  compels  us  to 
set  down  the  evil  with  the  good. 

"Are  you  ready?"  cried  one  of  the  men,  holding  the 
blanket.  "Now  all  together — one,  two,  three,  toss  !"and 
at  the  word  our  hero  winged  his  way  heavenward  with  such 
aid  as  ten  stalwart  devils  could  lend  him. 

Wentworth  was  now  nearly  exhausted  with  excitement 
and  fatigue,  yet  he  nerved  himself  to  endure  without  flinch 
ing.  Suddenly  a  device  occurred  to  him.  As  he  was  de 
scending  from  his  third  flight,  feeling  like  Vulcan  landing 


Fair  Harvard.  41 

upon  Lemnos  he  extended  both  his  feet  to  the  utmost. 
"Heavens!"  cried  one  of  his  tormentors,  "my  head's 
broken,"  and  Wentworth  had  the  pleasure  of  feeling  his 
heel  strike  a  hard  skull ;  this  was,  however,  lessened  at 
the  same  moment,  by  his  falling  heavily  upon  the  ground. 

"Let  the  punishment  of  fire  be  now  inflicted,"  com 
manded  the  Devil,  after  Wentworth  had  been  led  back  to 
his  room.  At  this  two  bands,  the  ends  of  which  were  at 
tached  to  hooks  in  the  ceiling,  were  placed  one  round 
Wentworth's  feet  and  the  other  round  his  chest.  Again 
the  boy  broke  out  in  execrations. 

"Hush,"  whispered  in  his  ear  the  voice  of  some  one 
half  relenting,  "or  they'll  gag  you,"  and  with  a  sullen 
look  of  rage,  Wentworth  repressed  his  words. 

The  '  Leeches  and  Doctors '  then  placed  the  brasier  be 
neath  him  ;  some  fluid  was  poured  into  it  and  lighted,  and 
our  hero  swung  to  and  fro  over  it  several  times,  and  then 
taken  down. 

"Let  the  punishment  of  water  be  inflicted,"  commanded 
the  Devil.  At  this,  Wentworth  was  placed  in  a  coffin,  and 
borne  from  the  room.  Soon  he  heard  a  noise  as  of  the  turn 
ing  of  a  windlass,  and  felt  himself  sinking  lower  and  lower. 
"What  if  the  rope  should  break ! "  he  thought,  and  derived 
little  pleasure  from  the  reflection.  Suddenly  the  bottom  of 
the  coffin  struck  water,  and  Wentworth  heard  the  men  talk 
ingabovehim.  "  Pull  him  up  !"  "pull  him  up!"  No,  bless 
him  ;  give  him  a  dowse ;  he  nearly  broke  my  head  !"  and 
the  coffin  sunk  still  lower.  The  water  pours  through  the 
cracks  :  it  covers  the  boy's  ankle  :  it  rises  to  his  knee  :  the 


42  Fair  Harvard. 

air  grows  dense  :  the  water  has  reached  his  waist :  his  head 
seems  bursting  :  his  eyes  start  from  their  sockets ;  and  with 
a  cry  of  despair,  he  loses  all  remembrance. 
' '  You  oughtn't  to  have  let  him  down  so  far. "  ' '  Confound 
the  fellow  !  Why  does'n't  he  come  to  ?"  are  the  first  words 
Wentworth  hears  on  returning  to  consciousness,  and  at  the 
same  moment  water  is  dashed  in  his  face,  and  he  feels 
some  one  chafing  his  hands. 

The  boy  opens  his  eyes  and  looks  languidly  around  him. 
"  Where  am  I?"  he  asks,  and  shudders  at  the  masks  and 
figures. 

"We've  punished  him  enough."  "There's  game  in  the 
fellow."  "We'll  drive  him  home."  Wentworth  heard  the 
men  whisper  to  each  other.  A  glass  of  brandy  was  then 
given  him,  his  eyes  were  again  bandaged,  and  he  was 
placed  in  a  carriage.  After  a  drive  of  some  minutes  he 
was  taken  from  the  carriage  and  set  upon  the  ground.  He 
pulled  off  his  bandage,  and  found  himself  by  the  familiar 
gate  of  Danforth's.  Through  this  he  passed,  and  groped 
his  way  to  his  room,  where  he  was  soon  buried  in  sleep, 
not  without  strange  dreams. 


CHAPTER  III. 

"  Ubi  quid  datur  oti, 
Uludo  chartis." 

'EITHER  time  nor  the  patience  of  our  readers 
would  permit  our  chronicling  the  daily  events 
of  our  hero's  course,  as  minutely  as  we  have 
thus  far  done.  It  is  also  difficult  to  catch  salient  points  of 
interest  in  college  life,  as  day  after  day  glides  placidly 
along.  Perhaps  an  extract  from  Salisbury's  diary  will 
give  our  readers  a  better  knowledge  of  the  common  current 
of  his  life  than  anything  which  we  could  write. 

"185-.  Thursday,  Dec.  tfh. — To-day  I  have  deter 
mined  to  keep  a  diary  of  my  thoughts  and  acts.  This  I 
shall  write  for  my  own  pleasure  in  the  future,  and  shall 
show  to  no  one,  not  even  my  mother,  or  my  sister.  I  rose 
this  morning  at  half  past  six,  and  sprang  '  uno  saltu '  from 
my  bed  into  my  hat."  [Our  hero  here  probably  refers  not 
to  that  hat  of  silk,  which  was  wont  both  to  protect  his  head 
from  the  sun  and  rain,  and  to  fill  his  heart  with  the  proud 
consciousness  of  manhood,  but  to  a  utensil  employed  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  a  bath  or  'tumby/  This  we  have 


44  Fair  Harvard. 

inferred  from  a  laborious  comparison  of  similar  passages.] 
"I  dressed  myself  hurriedly  in  boots,  pantaloons,  and 
coat,  and  ran  to  the  chapel.  I  have  already  '  cut '  eighteen 
prayers,  and  have  but  one  more  to  'cut'  this  term  without 
a  'Private/ 

1 '  I  learnt  at  breakfast  that  I  had  gained  nothing  by  going 
to  prayers,  as  the  monitor  had  been  '  screwed  up '  by  Van 
and  Rake.  After  breakfast  I  walked  to  my  room,  read 
over  my  Odyssey,  and  at  eight  went  to  recitation,  but  was 
not  called  up.  I  was  at  first  startled  at  finding  Sweatrame 
know  the  meaning  of  a  Greek  word.  While  he  was  recit 
ing,  however,  a  page  of  a 'pony 'was  blown  from  his  book 
upon  the  floor,  which  solved  the  riddle,  and  gave  us  great 
amusement.  The  men  here  do  not  recite  nearly  as  well 
as  we  used  to  at  Salem.  Many  of  them  seem  scarcely  to 
have  looked  at  their  lessons. 

' '  After  recitation,  I  walked  into  town  to  call  on  my  aunt, 
at  the  Tremont  House,  but  did  not  find  her  in.  Before 
calling  I  stopped  at  the  barber's  shop  under  the  hotel  to  get 
shaved.  The  barber  was  a  low  fellow,  and  said  as  this  was 
plainly  my  first  shave,  he  would  charge  me  half  price.  I 
reproved  his  insolence,  and  reported  him  to  his  employer, 
who  said  that  he  would  have  him  discharged.  I  have, 
however,  withdrawn  my  patronage  from  the  hotel. 

' '  I  took  a  car  at  the  bridge,  and  reached  Cambridge  just 
in  time  for  my  twelve  o'clock  recitation  in  Latin.  Brown 
called  me  up  the  first  man,  and  I  made  quite  a  'squirt.' 
Since  I  have  given  up  studying  Latin,  I  get  very  good 
marks.  After  dinner  I  dropped  into  Ayres'  room,  where  I 


Fair  Harvard.  45 

found  Ned  Bowyer,  and  enjoyed  a  profitable  conversation 
for  half  an  hour.  We  discussed  the  question  whether 
George  Washington  or  Napoleon  Buonaparte  were  the 
greater  general.  Ayres  took  the  side  of  the  former,  and 
argued  that  no  man  could  be  a  great  man  in  anything  who 
was  not  also  a  good  man.  Bowyer  thought  that  if  Wash 
ington  had  had  Napoleon's  advantages,  he  would  have 
been  the  greater  general,  but  I  cannot  think  so. 

' '  Ayres,  after  Bowyer  had  gone,  read  '  the  Woman  in 
White/  and  I  looked  over  the  Atlantic  Monthly  for  De 
cember.  I  am  ashamed  to  say  that  I  had  not  before  seen 
it,  though  it  has  been  out  two  entire  weeks.  The  articles 
were  admirable,  as  they  always  are,  and  the  '  Autocrat '  sur 
passed  himself.  I  walked  to  my  room  on  leaving  Ayres, 
stopping  a  moment  at  Bartlett's,  where  I  bought  a  very 
pretty  edition  of  Sir  '  Thomas  Browne's  Religio  Medici. 
This  I  mean  to  give  Hamilton  for  a  birthday  present. 
Reaching  my  room,  I  read  fifty  pages  of  living's  '  Life  of 
Washington,'  which  I  think  a  profound  work.  I  then 
'  dug '  on  my  Peirce's  Geometry,  and  at  five  went  to  recita 
tion.  It  would  try  the  soul  of  an  abolitionist  to  stand  a 
weary  hour,  gazing  at  the  black  face  of  a  long  board  as 
I  did,  without  solving  my  problem.  However,  I  worked 
out  Van's  for  him  correctly,  which  was  something.  Van 
is  a  man  of  great  talents,  though  lazy.  He  knows  the 
world  thoroughly,  without  being  spoiled  by  it,  though 
whom  of  us  indeed  has  it  not  somewhat  injured  ?  Some 
day  I  think  Van  will  become  a  very  distinguished  man. 

"After  tea  I  called  round  at  Hamilton's  room  to  get  my 


46  Fair  Harvard. 

Liddell's  Rome,  which  I  carelessly  left  there  two  days  ago. 
Yesterday,  rather  a  funny  thing  happened  in  recitation. 
The  tutor  said  'we  will  will  now  drop  Liddell/  at  which 
Van  let  fall  his  book  with  great  noise  upon  the  floor,  much 
to  the  tutor's  horror.  After  talking  a  few  minutes  with 
Hamilton,  he  suggested  our  calling  to  see  Bowyer  about 
getting  up  our  club-table  for  next  term.  Bowyer  told  us 
that  Van  had  already  got  up  a  table,  but  that  he  thought 
ours  would  be  a  better  one.  We  agreed  to  ask  Rakeman, 
Ayres,  and  three  other  men  to  join  us,  and  to  engage  Mrs. 
Green  of  Winthrop  Square  for  our  cook.  Bowyer  and  I 
were  chosen  by  Hamilton  as  a  committee  to  secure  that 
worthy  widow.  I  then  returned  to  my  room,  and  read 
over  an  article  in  the  Harvard  Magazine,  written  I  hear  by 
Morris,  which  really  shows  genius.  I  wonder  whether  I 
shall  ever  be  able  to  write  with  such  wit  and  power.  I 
have  just  finished  reading  the  last  part  of  Christie  Johnston — • 
a  charming  story.  It  is  now  only  ten  o'clock,  but  I  feel 
very  tired,  and  am  going  to  bed  like  a  little  boy  of  twelve. 
' '  Dec.  6t/i.  — I  rose  this  morning  at  six.  It  was  very  cold 
and  quite  dark.  The  water  in  my  hat  I  found  frozen,  and 
I  had  to  break  the  ice  with  a  dumb-bell.  I  took  my  bath, 
however,  but  did  not  feel  the  usual  glow  afterwards.  I 
then  swung  the  Indian  club  fifty  times,  and  went  to  prayers, 
and  thence  to  breakfast.  After  breakfast  I  went  to  recita 
tion,  but  was  delighted  to  find  that  Tutor  Robinson  had 
given  us  a  '  cut. '  We  waited  five  minutes  for  him,  and 
walked  off  just  as  he  was  running  round  the  corner.  Van 
and  I  then  started  off  on  a  good  long  walk.  Van  said  a 


Fair  Harvard.  47 

few  days  since  he  had  received  a  Public  Admonition  for 
'  cutting '  recitations.  He  had  at  once  sent  word  to  one  of 
his  servants  at  New  York,  to  send  him  any  letter  addressed 
to  his  father  marked  Cambridge,  and  had  himself  just  re 
ceived  the  letter  containing  the  notice  sent  by  the  Faculty. 
'  thus  saving  my  father,'  he  said,  'much  unnecessary  pain.' 
Van  is  a  very  good-hearted  fellow,  but  quaere,  was  it  wholly 
justifiable  ?  We  walked  about  eight  miles,  and  then  went  to 
Van's  room.  Van  smoked  two  or  three  pipes,  and  tried  to 
induce  me  to  do  the  same,  but  I  have  '  sworn  off '  for  the 
rest  of  the  term.  I  went  to  recitation  at  twelve,  but  was 
not  called  up.  After  dinner  I  made  a  call  on  Gowan, 
whom  I  am  getting  to  like  very  well.  He  is  a  man  of  vast 
ability.  When  he  first  came  to  Cambridge,  he  said  he 
did  not  think  '  pigtracks,'  of  it,  every  one  was  so  '  stuck  up,' 
but  now  he  thinks  everything  'high  pie.'  These  Western 
metaphors  are  very  expressive.  I  thence  went  to  the  Post- 
office,  which  I  had  neglected  to  do  this  morning.  There 
I  found  a  letter  from  mother,  with  a  photograph  of  Mar}7, 
which  was  very  pretty,  but  did  not  do  her  justice.  Stud 
ied  on  my  'Roman  Antiquities'  till  four,  and  after  recita 
tion,  went  to  the  gymnasium  with  Van.  To-day,  for  the 
first  time,  I  succeeded  in  going  up  a  rope  by  my  hands 
alone. 

' '  Van  told  me  that  Sweatrame  had  raised  money  lately  by 
ordering  suits  of  clothes  of  his  tailor,  and  receiving  fifty  per 
cent,  of  the  cost,  allowing  the  tailor  to  keep  the  clothes.  I 
said  this  seemed  to  me  to  be  a  very  low  way  of  getting 
money.  Van  replied  that  Sweatrame  doubtless  thought 


48  Fair  Harvard. 

that  to  get  money  was  the  first  object ;  that  the  means  or 
moral  part  of  it  was  an  after  consideration,  and,  like  every 
moral,  should  come  at  the  end  of  the  story.  Van  also  told 
me  a  very  wicked,  but  also  very  good  story  of  a  lady  who 
ran  off  with  a  man,  and  left  a  letter  for  her  husband,  say 
ing  that  though  she  could  no  longer  love  him  as  a  hus 
band,  she  should  always  regard  him  as  a  brother.  After 
supper  I  left  an  order  at  Sawin's  the  expressman's,  to  call 
at  Bowyer's  room,  to  take  a  forty  inch  chest  to  town,  and 
then  dropped  into  Harvard  Block  to  see  Hamilton.  We 
discussed  the  question  whether  a  lawyer  should  defend  a 
man  whom  he  knows  to  be  guilty.  I  went  to  my  room  at 
about  half  past  seven,  and  have  ever  since  been  reading 
Raleigh's  '  History  of  the  World/  a  work  of  grand  scope. 

11  Dec.  7th. — This  morning  I  rose  at  six,  took  a  cold  bath, 
and  went  to  prayers.  About  a  foot  of  snow  had  fallen  in 
the  night,  and  it  was  still  snowing. 

"Prayers  are  the  things  that  try  men's  souls  in  college. 

' '  To-day  is  Saturday,  when  there  is  but  one  recitation.  At 
eight  I  handed  in  my  Greek  exercise,  and  returning  to  my 
room  looked  over  'Vanity  Fair'  for  an  hour  or  two.  It 
seems  to  be  an  unhealthy  book,  and  I  think  I  will  not 
read  it.  At  the  end  of  that  time,  Van  called  for  me  and 
we  rode  together  into  town.  Van  was  measured  for  two 
suits  of  clothes,  and  bought  a  cartload  of  collars,  scarfs, 
and  such  things.  Van  is  an  extravagant  dog.  After  this 
we  strolled  into  the  Athenaeum  to  see  the  Exhibition,  and 
to  while  away  the  time,  until  the  hour  for  dinner  at  Des- 
tre's,  to  which  I  had  invited  Van.  This  found  us  both 


Fair  Harvard.  49 

very  hungry,  and  we  did  it  ample  justice.  Morris  was 
there  with  two  other  Seniors,  all  of  whom  were  very 
pleasant.  They  talked  about  their  class  elections  most  of 
the  time.  They  said  they  felt  sure  that  their  club— the  Mush- 
and-Milk — would  carry  all  the  offices,  which  I  hope  will  be 
the  result.  After  dinner  Van  and  I  went  to  the  theatre  to  see 
Booth.  We  stayed  through  two  acts  only,  and  then  went 
to  Parker's  to  play  billiards  and  enjoy  ourselves  generally. 
We  found  Rakeman  and  Sweatrame  there,  and  staid  until 
half-past  eleven,  when  we  all  walked  together  to  the  Revere 
House,  and  took  the  last  car  to  Cambridge.  I  was  told  by 
Sweatrame  that  two  men  were  hazed  yesterday  in  the  most 
outrageous  manner,  and  I  heard  a  week  ago,  that  the 
Med.  Fac.  had  threatened  to  haze  me  again.  Every  night, 
therefore,  I  fortify  myself  against  surprise.  In  front  of  the 
door  I  plant  an  abattis  by  tipping  up  three  or  four  chairs 
with  their  legs  towards  the  door.  I  then  dig  a  ditch  by  fill 
ing  my  hat  with  water,  and  placing  it  behind  the  chairs. 
I  then  lay  me  down  to  sleep." 

Thus,  as  the  first  Freshman  term  wore  away,  our  hero 
grew  in  mind  and  body. 

The  last  day  of  the  term  soon  arrived,  and  Wentworth 
took  leave  of  his  classmates  for  a  six  short  weeks,  and 
drove  to  the  station.  As  the  cars  rolled  along  it  was  not 
without  a  just  feeling  of  pride  that  he  looked  back  over  the 
five  months  just  past,  and  compared  the  present  man  of 
the  world,  with  the  then  unsophisticated  boy. 

His  thoughts  first  naturally  turned  to  the  change  his 
body  had  undergone.  His  upper  arm  now  measured  a 


50  Fair  Harvard. 

full  inch  more  than  before,  and  had  reached  the  appalling 
size  of  thirteen  and  a  quarter  inches,  while  his  chest  was 
developed  in  not  less  dangerous  proportions. 

The  shell  that  covered  this  manly  form,  had  also  changed 
its  appearance.  The  semi-rustic  garments  of  Salem,  to  the 
great  grief  of  its  fashionable  tailor,  our  hero  had  long  since 
discarded,  and  was  now  arrayed  with  the  dazzling  beauty 
which  marks  the  proud  gentry  of  Boston. 

Wentworth's  mind  had  also  kept  equal  step  with  the 
growth  of  his  body.  He  had  read  a  great  number  of  the 
works  of  the  best  authors,  and  could  criticise  them  all  with 
sententious  brevity.  As  a  matter,  of  minor  importance,  he 
had  studied  faithfully  on  the  text-books  of  the  college 
course,  and  in  spite  of  several  deductions,  stood  third  on 
the  rank  list. 

The  knowledge  of  the  world,  however,  which  he  had 
gained  during  the  past  six  months,  war,  what  chiefly  sepa 
rated  him  from  his  former  self.  The  society,  the  fashion, 
the  great  affairs  in  which  he  had  taken  part,  though  they 
had  made  him  somewhat  blase,  had  given  him  a  confi 
dence  and  repose  of  manner  in  pleasing  contrast  to  his  for 
mer  effervescence.  He  had  learnt  to  attend  a  dinner  with 
out  embarrassment,  and  in  wines  was  a  great  connoisseur, 
distinguishing  sherry  and  madeira  with  ease,  and  often 
Bordeaux  from  Burgundy.  He  had  become,  also,  a  good 
cue  at  billiards,  and  often  made  runs  of  five  or  six  points. 
He  had  seen  many  men  and  known  their  manners,  and 
the  knowledge  of  character  he  had  thus  acquired  was  so 
great,  that  he  could  discourse  by  hours  together  on  the  dif- 


Fair  Harvard.  51 

ferent  qualities  of  mind  and  body  which  marked  his  class 
mates. 

Our  hero  had  thus  gained  no  slight  acquaintance  with 
the  worlds  of  men  and  books.  This,  though  it  did  not 
place  him  upon  a  level  with  the  members  of  the  older 
classes,  one  can  readily  see  separated  him  by  an  impas 
sable  gulf  from  his  former  associates  and  the  great  mass  of 
mankind. 

Wentworth's  manner,  therefore,  on  returning  to  his  na 
tive  city,  assumed  something  of  that  "hauteur,"  which 
makes  the  young  '  collegy, '  an  object  of  great  repugnance 
to  the  envious  vulgar. 

Wentworth's  mother  and  sister,  however,  received  him 
with  increased  admiration,  and  listened  to  his  anecdotes 
with  that  interest  which  one  finds,  alas  !  nowhere,  save  with 
his  female  relatives  of  the  nearest  degree.  Much  they  mar 
velled  that  one  small  head  could  carry  such  store  of  know 
ledge,  or  pass  unscathed  through  so  many  perils. 

"  If  I  had  known  what  sort  of  a  place  college  was, " 
Wentworth's  mother  would  often  exclaim,  as  she  shuddered 
over  the  dangers  a  college  boy  encounters  in  the  pursuit  of 
truth,  ' '  I  should  never  have  let  you  leave  home. " 


rv 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Ridete,  quidquid  est  domi  cacliiuuoruui." 

HAVE  found  a  capital  dodge  for  Barney 
Gumm,"  remarked  Rakeman,  two  weeks  after 
the  beginning  of  his  second  term,  to  his  friends 
who  were  seated  round  him  at  supper,  at  their  club-table. 
"You  know  what  a  bore  he  is.  So  yesterday  when  he 
called  to  see  me — 'Barney/  said  I,  'you  know  how  de 
lighted  I  always  am  to  see  you,  but  you  remember  how  I 
was  bored  by  Nutkins  last  term,  and  I  am  afraid  to  let  any 
one  in  for  fear  it  should  be  Nutkins.  Now,  Barnacle, 
when  you  call,  if  you  will  give  three  knocks,  I  shall  know 
it  is  you,  and  will  at  once  unlock  the  door. " 

"Isn't  that  a  grand  dodge?  I'm  going  to  tell  Nutkins 
the  same  story  of  Barnacle." 

"You  are  a  great  genius,  Rakeman,"  said  Wentworth, 
"to  make  the  number  of  your  enemies  a  cause  of  weakness. 
Our  class  is  fortunate  in  having  more  than  one  bore. 
How  astonished  Gumm  and  Nutkins  will  be  to  find  that 
now  they  know  the  countersign  it  is  harder  to  get  into  your 
room,  than  before  you  let  them  into  the  secret." 

1 '  What  a  picayune  '  runt '  Lumpy  Nutkins  is  !"  the  South- 


Fair  Harvard.  53 

ron  added,  as  the  men  pushed  back  their  chairs  and  tipped 
them  against  the  walls  near  the  windows.  Ayres  alone — 
with  the  terror  of  whose  name  boarding-house  keepers  are 
wont  to  still  their  children's  cries — -remained  at  the  table 
unsatisfied. 

The  club-table  room,  where  the  young  fellows  were  seat 
ed,  was  on  the  lower  floor  of  one  of  the  corner  houses  of 
Winthrop  Square.  The  walls  were  hung  with  portraits  of 
the  ancestors  of  the  landlady,  Mrs.  Green,  all  taken  while 
confined  in  the  stocks,  by  their  country  tailors.  A  large 
Bible,  on  which  stood  an  empty  card-case,  rested  on  an 
ancient  etagere  in  a  corner. 

The  claims  of  art  and  religion  thus  satisfied,  the  rest  of 
the  furniture  of  the  room  was  devoted  to  utility,  and  con 
sisted  of  a  large  table,  and  a  dozen  chairs.  Winthrop 
Square,  on  which  the  room  fronted,  is  connected  by  Brigh 
ton  Street  to  Harvard  Square,  from  which  it  is  only  a  few 
rods  distant.  Between  the  two  squares  once  stood  Porter's 
Tavern,  famous  in  song,  and  still  green  in  the  memory  of 
our  dissipated  fathers.  There  in  their  wild  youth  they  de 
voured  glorious  suppers,  and  drank  their  good  old  madeira, 
singing  jolly  choruses  to  the  music  in  the  balcony  above 
them.  Now,  alas !  the  tavern  has  passed  away,  and  Irish 
women  screech  where  students  sang.  There  also  now 
dwells  the  venerable  James,  high  above  the  gaping  crowd, 
an  ancient  merchant,  who  watches  succeeding  generations 
of  students,  and  panders  to  their  passion  for  peanuts. 

Seated  here  by  a  window  of  the  club-table  room  on  a 
summer's  noon,  one  sees  playing  on  the  Green  a  few  ragged 


54  Fair  Harvard. 

children  from  a  Hibernian  hive  near  the  river.  One, 
mounted  on  a  post,  is  watching  his  comrades  at  leap-frog. 
Another,  with  a  handful  of  pebbles,  creeps  after  a  courtly 
cock,  who  is  catering  to  his  cackling  crowd  of  concubines. 
Hard  by,  a  little  Miss  Yellowlegs  is  making  pies  with  her 
autochthonous  sisters,  and  embellishes  the  dust  with  her 
bright  colored  rags. 

Later  one  beholds  the  conscious  '  towney '  on  his  even 
ing  promenade,  with  imitative  repose  and  ambitious  neck 
tie.  Him  passes  with  graceful  step  a  resplendent  swell,  one 
of  Harvard's  '  own ' — "  Elysian  beauty,  melancholy  grace, " 
on  his  way  to  the  wharves  to  see  the  boats  go  out.  If  the 
day  favors,  the  gardens  opposite  discover  pretty  misses  with 
coquettish  hats,  playing  croquet,  a  game  of  delight  to  all 
small-footed,  fair-ankled  daughters  of  Eve,  but  frowned 
upon  by  the  modest  feet  and  more  moral  ankles  of  less 
favored  fair. 

Still  later,  perhaps  one  hears  limping  by  the  groaning 
hack,  filled  with  Irish  ladies  returning  from  a  decent 
burial.  As  they  pass,  they  wave  their  handkerchiefs,  and 
address  you  words  of  sudden  affection. 

* '  Ned,  you  sly  rascal !  Stop  that  winking  with  your  left 
eye  at  that  girl.  Ain't  you  ashamed  of  yourself!"  cried 
Rakeman,  who  had  himself  been  rapping  at  the  window  to 
a  pretty  serving-maid  just  coming  from  the  variety  shop 
opposite,  with  a  pound  of  butter,  and  a  toss  of  her  outraged 
head.  The  '  oar '  blushed,  and  Rakeman  remained  silent 
a  few  minutes  watching  Ayres,  who  continued  to  absorb 
toast  with  a  heartless  disregard  of  the  rights  of  widows. 


Fair  Harvard.  55 

"Robin,  "at  length  inquired  Rakeman,  "  if  you  were 
to  be  allowed  to  eat  only  ten  pounds  of  food  in  one  day, 
how  many  pounds  would  you  eat  in  ten  days?" 

-A  hundred  of  course.     Don't  ask  me  such  silly  ques 


tions. 


'  No  Robin.    Thirty  is  the  correct  answer.     You  would 
die  of  starvation  the  third  day. " 

"You  get  off  a  great  many  asinine  gibes/'  rejoined  the 

warbler." 

"  Robin/''  returned  the  Southron,  "you  remind  me,  by 
your  remark,  that  had  you  lived  in  the  days  of  the  Roman 
Republic,  you  might  have  been  put  to  some  good  use, 
whereas  now  you  do  nothing  but  confound  the  calculations 
of  political  economists." 

"What  use  do  you  mean?"  asked  Ayres,  enraged  at  the 

interruption. 

"You  might  then,  Robin,"  replied  Rakeman,  "have 
served  as  a  medium  of  exchange."  Hamilton  and  Sauls- 
bury  laughed  at  Rakey's  jest,  and  after  a  few  moments  Bow- 
yer.  Robin  himself  did  not  see  the  point  until  a  month 
afterwards,  when  he  came  across  the  name  of  the  Roman 
coin  in  recitation.  He  at  once  burst  into  a  loud  laugh,  for 
which  he  received  a  "  Private"  from  his  Latin  tutor. 

"What  a  capital  club-table  we  have,  fellows,"  remarked 
Hamilton  shortly.  "I  think  we  shall  have  a  good  influ 
ence  on  the  class." 

The  theme  pricked  up  Ayres'  ears,  and  he  paused  a 
moment  in  his  desolating  career.  "I  have  heard  older 
men  say  "—he  said  hastily— "that  if  a  man  belong  to  a 


56  Fair  Harvard. 

good  club-table,  he  is  sure  of  getting  elected  into  all  the 
Societies."  The  warbler  paid  dear  for  his  negligence. 
Turning  back  to  the  table  he  cast  a  look  of  horror  at  the 
last  plate  of  toast,  escaping  under  cover  of  Hebe  Bridget. 

"My  cousin  once  told  me,"  said  Bowyer,  "that  a  man 
in  his  class,  by  controlling  his  club-table,  though  that  con 
trolled  the  societies  and  entire  class." 

"  You,  Robin,  in  that  case,"  said  Rakeman,  "  can  easily 
make  yourself  autocrat  of  the  class.  The  societies  rule  the 
class.  Our  club-table  will  rule  the  societies,  and  you  with, 
your  appetite  can  easily  bring  us  all  to  terms.  Eh,  Ned  ?" 

' '  Rake, "  returned  the  '  oar ' — "  you're  a  droll  dog.  How 
I  should  like  to  see  you  sweating  behind  Seaborn  in  the 
Harvard  :  that  would  take  it  out  of  you. '' 

"How  I  should  like  to  see  you  on  a  plantation  picking 
cotton,  that  would  take  it  out  of  you,  you  old  left  eye  winker. 
But  I'm  off.  Who's  going  to  Sweatrame's  private  theatricals 
to-night  ?  They  begin  at  eight. " 

"  And  a  cruising  we  will  go." 

Singing  this  genial  chorus,  the  jolly  son  of  the  South 
took  Bowyer's  arm,  and  the  two  sauntered  off  together,  fol 
lowed  by  the  rest  of  the  table. 

"Lewis,"  said  Saulsbury  to  his  friend  as  they  were  walk 
ing  toward  Harvard  Block,  "I  wish  to  make  a  proposi 
tion  to  you,  that  we  learn  ten  odes  of  Horace  by  heart 
every  week,  and  recite  them  to  each  other,  keeping  an  ac 
count  of  our  mistakes. " 

"  Bravo,  Wentworth,  that  is  the  very  thing  I  want  to  do. 


Fair  Harvard.  57 

Tutor  Rebus  told  me  that  no  one  ought  to  be  considered 
a  Latin  scholar,  until  he  at  least  knew  the  odes  of  Horace 
by  heart.  I  heard  of  your  reciting  Horace  the  other  day 
without  a  book.  That  was  a  very  '  swelly  '  thing  to  do. " 

"  These  recitations  cut  up  a  man's  time  so,  that  it  is 
hard  to  study  to  any  purpose.  I  have  a  plan  that  saves  the 
time  from  being  wholly  lost.  I  read  over  my  lesson  with 
a  '  pony '  before  going  in,  and  try  to  learn  the  Latin  and 
Greek  by  heart  during  recitation. " 

"Why,  Wentworth,  do  you  use  a  'pony."  'Equo  ne 
crediteTeucri"—  "A  pony  never  does  one  any  good." 

"A  translation,"  replied  Saulsbury,  "is  only  a  con 
densed  dictionary.  There  is  a  way  some  men  have  of  ask 
ing  the  men  who  recited  in  earlier  divisions,  what  questions 
the  tutor  asked,  and  looking  up  the  answers  to  them. 
That  seems  to  me  to  be  unfair,  but  I  don't  see  why  one 
should  not  use  means  open  to  all.  What  right  has  the 
Faculty  to  waste  four  hours  a  day  of  time  making  me  hear 
the  ignorance  of  my  classmates?" 

"Well,  Wentworth,  perhaps  you  are  right,  but  I  should 
not  like  to  do  so  myself. " 

"  I  am  going  to  develop  myself  harmoniously  this  term, 
Lewis,"  said  Saulsbury.  "I  remember  reading  in  some 
book  this  summer,  an  idea  that  struck  me  as  very  true. 
That  the  harmonious  development  of  body,  mind  and  soul, 
was  the  only  worthy  aim  of  an  intelligent  being. " 

' '  To  be  stroke  of  the  Harvard,  President  of  the  Chris 
tian  Brethren,  and  first  scholar,  is  the  practical  way  of  put 
ting  it,  I  suppose,"  returned  Hamilton,  laughing.  "  Have 


58  Fair  Harvard. 

you  read  much  this  vacation  ?  I  have|been  reading  Brown 
ing,  Ruskin  and  Hawthorne.  WhaV  a  wonderful  style 
Hawthorne  has.  I  never  read  him  before. " 

"I  read  Macaulay's  Essays,  and  some  volumes  of  Car- 
lyle,"  replied  Saulsbury.  "  How  absurd  Carlyle's  views 
seem  to  an  American  !  He  seems  to  think  that  the  greatness 
of  one  man  is  the  degradation  of  all  the  rest.  By  the  way, 
Lewis,  are  you  going  to  Sweatrame's  to-night  ?v 

"No,  I  was  not  invited.  We  are  not  on  very  good 
terms.  I  should  go  by  all  means,  if  I  were  you.  They 
will  be  very  good,  I  have  no  doubt." 

' '  Well,  good  bye,  old  man.     If  I'm  going  it's  time  to 

go-" 

Wentworth,  with  this,  took  leave  of  Hamilton,  and  calling 
for  Rakeman,  with  him  walked  to  the  '  Bakery '  where 
Sweatrame  had  his  rooms. 

"  We'll  all  drink  stone  blind." 

This  pious  song,  which  the  Southron  was  singing,  an 
nounced  the  approach  of  our  hero  and  his  friend,  who 
were  at  once  welcomed  by  their  host.  The  room  into 
which  they  entered  was  filled  with  chairs,  seated  in  which 
were  several  of  Wentworth's  friends,  laughing  and  talking 
about  men  and  things.  Across  one  end  of  the  room  a 
curtain  was  drawn,  in  front  of  which  was  a  row  of  candles 
to  serve  as  footlights. 

' '  Excuse  me,  fellows,  I  must  see  to  something  behind 
the  scenes.  There's  Van  beckoning  to  me,"  said  Sweat 
rame  after  seating  his  guests. 


Fair  Harvard.  59 

"What  are  you  talking  about,  Ned,  so  earnestly  ?"  asked 
Wentworth  of  his  friend  the  '  oar. ' 

"We  were  talking  about  the  '  Institute/' '  Bowyer  re 
plied.  "I  wonder  who  will  be  elected  among  the  first 
ten.  They  always  elect  the  first  scholar,  so  you're  safe  old, 
man. " 

"  Not  for  that  reason  I'm  afraid,  Ned  ;  I  wish  I  were." 

"It  gives  a  man  a  great  position  in  his  class,  to  be 
chosen  among  the  first  ten, "  added  Bowyer.  * '  He  becomes 
a  sort  of  censor.  It  ruins  a  man  not  to  be  elected  into  the 
'  Institute, '  and  the  first  ten  elect  all  the  rest. " 

' '  I  remember, "  said  Wentworth,  ' '  Ayres  told  me  he 
had  heard  it  was  a  bad  thing  to  resist  hazing,  or  to  do  any 
thing  to  provoke  the  upper  classes,  because  it  injured  one's 
chances  of  getting  into  Societies.  I  told  him  I  thought  it 
of  very  trifling  importance,  compared  with  keeping  one's 
self  respect. " 

"One  doesn't  know  much  about  college  life,  Went 
worth,  I  suppose,"  said  Bowyer,  "until  he  gets  into  the 
Societies.  Senior  and  Junior  years  are  much  pleasanter  on 
that  account. " 

"I  don't  know  much  about  college  Societies,  Ned;  I 
never  talked  much  with  the  older  men  about  them." 

' '  My  cousin  tells  me,  Wentworth,  that  it  is  best  never  to 
speak  about  them.  It  injures  a  man  very  much." 

"  Oil,  I'm  the  rambling  rake  of  poverty." 

The  Southron  stopped  singing  his  ditty.  "Are  you 
talking  about  Societies,  Ned  ?"  he  said.  ' '  I  remember  when 
I  first  came  to  college,  seeing  the  sign  of  the  Mush-and- 


60  Fair  Harvard. 

Milk  Club — you  know  what  it  is  :  a  man's  name  in  white 
letters  on  a  black  strip  of  cloth — 'By  Jove!'  thinks  I, 
"that's  a  good  idea!  I'll  paste  up  my  own  name  in  the 
same  way  !  A  Senior  told  me  I  had  better  not  do  it. 
That  it  was  the  sign  of  a  Society,  and  it  would  get  me  into 
trouble." 

"It  would  have  ruined  you,  Rakeman,  if  you  had  done 
so." 

And  a  shudder  passed  over  the  'oar/  as  he  thought  of 
the  danger  his  friend  had  escaped.  "Hallo,  the  perform 
ances  are  commencing, "  he  added,  as  the  whistle  sounded 
and  the  curtain  rose.  The  first  scene  represented  the  Fac 
ulty  room,  with  the  President  seated  alone  at  the  head  of  a 
long  table.  A  side  door  opened,  and  a  student  entered, 
trembling  violently. 

"Mr.  Pidcock  Poplett,"  said  the  President,  naming  the 
most  bashful  and  effeminate  boy  in  the  class,  whose  sex 
had  often  been  a  matter  of  serious  inquiry  among  his  class 
mates.  ' '  Mr.  Pidcock  Poplett,  the  Faculty  have  been  in 
formed  that  your  language  and  conduct  toward  the  college 
goody  who  has  charge  of  your  rooms,  has  been  grossly  im 
proper,  and  wish  me  to  inform  you  that  for  this  offence 
you  are  suspended  from  college  for  one  year.  If  the  of 
fence  is  repeated  while  you  remain  in  college,  the  penalty 
will  be  expulsion." 

Poplett  took  out  a  handkerchief,  and  pressed  it  to  his  eyes. 

"Cannot — cannot  you  intercede  for  me!"  he  cried  in 
broken  accents.  "By  the  beard  of  St.  Anthony,  I  did  not 
make  the  first  advances. " 


Fair  Harvard.  61 

"I  will  state  what  you  say,"  said  the  President ;  "but  I 
assure  you,  I  have  no  influence  with  the  Faculty." 

"Oh,  it  will  kill  my  poor  mother!''  cried  the  boy,  grop 
ing  his  way  out,  weeping  at  every  pore. 

"I  don't  think,"  mused  the  President,  slowly  rubbing  his 
shrewd  spectacles,  ' '  I  don't  think  I  have  committed  my 
self." 

The  door  again  opened,  and  a  student  with  a  leathery 
countenance  entered,  and  bowed  to  the  President. 

"Mr.  Norman  Lovelock  Buggs,"  said  the  President. 
"You  have  a  room  in  College  House." 

"Yes  sir." 

' '  Mr.  Buggs,  complaints  have  been  made  by  several  stu 
dents  living  in  that  building,  that  you  have  in  your  room  a 
round  tin  article  of  great  size,  vulgarly  known  under  the 
name  of  a  hip  or  hat  bath.  That  you  have  twice  filled  this 
utensil  with  water,  once  during  the  last,  and  once  again 
during  this  present  term,  for  the  purpose  of  bathing,  to  the 
great  annoyance  of  your  fellow  students,  who  have  been 
kept  from  their  studies  by  the  disturbance.  The  Faculty 
have  therefore  voted  you  a  public  admonition.  If  the  of 
fence  is  repeated  while  you  remain  in  college,  the  penalty 
will  be  suspension." 

Buggs'  face  at  first  expressed  astonishment,  which,  as  the 
President  continued,  gave  place  to  deep  indignation. 

"I  never  did  such  a  thing,"  he  cried,  as  the  President 
finished.  "  I  never  have  done,  and  I  never  would  do  such 
a  thing.  Oh,  cannot  you  intercede  for  me  ?  On  the  honor 
of  a  gentleman  " 


62  Fair  Harvard. 

"I  will  state  what  you  say,"  said  the  President;  "but 
you  know  I  have  no  influence  with  the  Faculty." 

"Oh,  it  will  kill  my  poor  mother!"  cried  the  boy  in 
agony,  and  he  pressed  his  handkerchief  to  his  eyes,  and 
went  out  of  the  room  weeping  hysterically. 

"I  don't  think,"  mused  the  President,  slowly  rubbing 
his  shrewd  spectacles,  "I  don't  think  I  have  committed 
myself." 

The  door  again  opened,  and  a  student,  whose  face  wore 
a  look  of  remorse,  entered  the  room. 

"Mr.  Rumun  Venus  Weed,"  said  the  President,  fasten 
ing  upon  the  boy  a  look  of  the  severest  displeasure.  "  Mr. 
Rumun  Venus  Weed,  the  Faculty  have  received  informa 
tion,  which  they  are  forced  to  believe  authentic,  that  you 
have  on  one  several  occasion  liquidated,  paid  or  satisfied 
a  small  fraction  of  a  claim  purporting  to  be  held  against 
you  by  one  Hill,  stable-keeper,  in  open  violation  of  the 
laws  of  the  Commonwealth,  and  the  customs  of  the  Uni 
versity.  " 

"I  confess,"  broke  in  the  boy,  remorse  deepening  on 
his  face,  "to  have  once  yielded  to  this  criminal  weakness. 
But  can  I  not  plead  my  inexperience — my  bitter,  bitter 
repentance  ?  I  swear  to  you  " 

' '  And  the  Faculty  have  accordingly  voted  you  a  public 
admonition,"  continued  the  relentless  President. 

"Pity,  oh  pity  my  youth  !"  besought  the  boy,  clasping 
his  hands  in  supplication. 

"'Young  man,"  said  the   President,   softening   a   little, 


Fair  Harvard.  63 

"the  offence  though  new  is  rank.     The  Faculty  think  an 
example  should  be  made  of  you,  lest  this  custom, 

'like  a  new  disease,  unknown  to  men, 

Creep,  no  precaution  used,  among  the  crowd.' 

I  will,   however,  state  what  you  say,  but  I  regret  to  say  I 
have  no  influence  with  the  Faculty/' 

"Oh  it  will  kill  my  poor  mother !"  said  the  youth,  and 
groped  his  way  from  the  room,  as  one  stunned  by  a  grief  too 
deep  for  tears. 

"I  don't  think,"  mused  the  President,  slowly  rubbing 
his  shrewd  spectacles,  "I  don't  think  I  have  committed 
myself." 

The  next  scene  represented  a  college  recitation-room, 
and  the  personal  habits  of  the  different  tutors  were  taken 
off.  The  mode  in  which  recalcitrant  Prodger  lifted  his  leg, 
or  sneaky  Brown  glared  at  the  students,  and  delivered  his 
sentences  of  death.  The  last  scene  discovered  the  Plummer 
Professor,  reading  a  paper  from  the  pulpit,  in  scriptural 
style,  in  which  the  Faculty  were  seen  coming  out  of  the 
Ark,  and  each  member  likened  to  some  animal  not  of  the 
highest  dignity. 

Thunders  of  applause  in  each  case  followed  the  falling 
of  the  curtain,  and  Van,  Sweatrame,  Ayres,  and  the  other 
actors  were  called  out,  and  obliged  to  make  speeches  of 
thanks  to  their  audience.  The  Faculty  song  was  next 
sung  by  Ayres,  and  a  pleasant  supper  then  made  its 
appearance,  and  the  men  were  soon  devouring  their 
oysters,  and  smoking  and  chatting  in  great  spirits. 

"The  Seniors,  this  term,"  said  Boywer,  "had  a  great 
fight  over  their  orator.  The  Mush-and-Milk  was  very 


64  Fair  Harvard. 

hard  pushed  by  the  Anti-Mushes,  but  they  got  their  orator 
by  one  vote." 

' '  Doesn't  a  class  elect  its  best  men  to  the  class  offices, 
without  regard  to  Societies?"  asked  Wentworth. 

"  Of  course  not,"  said  Sweatrame,  laughing  at  the  inno 
cence  of  his  guest.  "The  Mush-and-Milk  Club  has  its 
candidates,  and  the  scrubs  their  candidates,  and  each  party 
tries  to  elect  its  own  men." 

"Last  night,"  Rakeman  interrupted  the  conversation 
with  remarking,  "  Brandreth  came  into  my  room  to  get 
me  to  file  off  some  screws  on  one  side,  so  that  they  could 
not  be  unscrewed,  and  about  one  o'clock  called  for  me  to 
go  with  him,  and  hold  a  candle,  while  he  and  Seaborn 
screwed  up  Tutor  Jones.  They  had  to  open  Jones'  door 
with  an  axe  this  morning,  and  Brandreth  gained  a  recita 
tion." 

"  I  wonder,"  remarked  Ayres,  joining  in  the  conversa 
tion,  "how  Jones  can  stay  in  a  place  where  he  is  so  hated. 
I  should  think  he  would  leave  the  college." 

"I've  heard,"  said  Bowyer,  "that  one  reason  why  Tutor 
Rebus  is  so  popular,  is  that  he  always  says  'you  know'  so 
and  so,  when  telling  a  man  anything.  Jones  always  says 
'of  course'  a  thing  is  so  and  so.  Rebus  too  always  calls 
a  man  Mr.  He  is  a  perfect  gentleman,  and  the  most  pop 
ular  teacher  in  college. " 

' '  It  seems  strange  to  me, "  said  Van,  ' '  that  men  should 
be  praised  so  much  here  for  being  gentlemen,  as  if  it  were 
such  a  great  thing.  I  remember  father  used  to  say  that 
being  a  gentleman  was  like  having  a  pair  of  legs — nothing 


Fair  Harvard.  65 

to  boast  of  having,  though  it  would  be  a  misfortune  to  be 
without  them." 

"I  had  almost  rather  be  a  law  student  than  a  tutor," 
said  Sweatrame. 

"  There  is  a  strong  movement  on  foot  to  induce  you  to 
become  a  tutor,  Sweatrame,"  which  sally  of  Wentworth's 
was  received  with  a  laugh  by  his  hearers,  since  Sweatrame 
•was  well  known  to  be  engaged  in  a  desperate  rivalry  with 
Nutkins  for  the  foot  of  the  class.  The  competition  was 
terrible,  but  the  odds  were  in  favor  of  Sweatrame.  ' '  Singu 
larly  enough,"  continued  Wentworth,  "some  Sophs  had 
some  theatricals  night  before  last  in  my  building,  and 
Seaborn  invited  me  into  his  room  to  see  them." 

' '  I  should  think  some  fellows  in  that  class  would  act  very 
well,"  remarked  Rakey.  "Tell  us  about  them." 

' '  That  Brandreth,  is  a  capital  actor.  In  one  scene  he 
represented  Professor  Alchemist.  He  had  a  table  before 
him  covered  with  retorts,  blow-pipes,  and  all  that  sort  of 
thing,  and  with  two  bottles  of  ink  on  it.  Brandreth 
stood  up  dressed  in  black.  'Gentlemen,'  he  began, 
'  in  my  last  lecture,  I  showed  you  some  of  the  peculiar 
characteristics  of  solids.  In  my  present  lecture  I  propose 
to  illustrate  spme  of  the  singular  propensities  of  liquids. 
You  will  observe  that  I  hold  in  my  right  hand  a  piece  of 
white  letter  paper.  If  now  I  dip  this  paper  which  I  hold 
in  my  right  hand,  into  a  colorless  substance  like  water,  as  I 
now  do,  you  observe  that  no  change  takes  place  in  the 
color  of  the  paper.  If,  however,  I  take  this  bottle  of  black 
ink  in  my  left  hand,  as  I  now  do,  and  grasping  the  letter 


66  Fair  Harvard. 

paper  firmly  in  my  right  hand,  dip  the  paper  into  the  black 
compound,  which  I  hold  in  my  left  hand,  the  paper  be 
comes  immediately  of  a  deep  black  color.  If  on  the  other 
hand  I  take  this  bottle  of  red  ink  in  my  left  hand,  as  I  now 
do,  and  still  grasping  the  letter  paper  firmly  in  my  right 
hand,  dip  the  paper  into  the  red  compound  which  I  hold 
in  my  left  hand,  the  paper  becomes  immediately  of  a  deep 
red  color.  These  experiments  afford  the  most  delicate  test 
of  the  quality  of  these  liquids,  and  prove  that  the  first  com 
pound  is  an  alkali  or  base,  and  that  the  second  compound 
is  an  acid.  The  discovery  of  the  wonderful  properties  of 
this  paper  was  made  in  a  singular  manner. 

"  'Chemistry  was  just  emerging  from  its  empirical  state, 
and  the  united  aim  of  chemists  of  genius  was  to  discover 
some  test  for  liquids  to  introduce  the  element  of  certainty 
into  chemistry,  and  raise  it  to  its  just  position  as  a  science. 

"  'In  the  year  1814,  in  an  alabaster  room  lined  with  red 
and  blue  litmus  paper,  sat  a  thin  spare  man.  Who  was 
that  thin  spare  man  ?  That  thin  spare  man  wras  Sir 
Humphrey  Davy  !  Sir  Humphrey  Davy,  like  all  great 
chemists  of  that  period,  was  endeavoring  to  discover  a  test 
for  liquids. 

' ' '  Taking  a  piece  of  white  letter  paper  in  his  right  hand, 
he  first  dipt  it  into  the  compound  of  oxygen  and  hydro 
gen,  vulgarly  known  as  water.  The  experiment  did  not 
succeed,  and  no  change  took  place  in  the  color  of  the  pa 
per.  Any  other  man  would  have  despaired.  Not  so  Sir 
Humphrey  Davy,  Drinking  off  a  glass  of  sulphuric  acid, 
Sir  Humphrey  Davy  lit  his  oxy-hydrogen  blow-pipe, 


Fair  Harvard.  67 

which  emits  a  lambent-colored  flame,  and  heated  a  vessel 
full  of  alcohol  until  it  entirely  evaporated.  Sir  Humphrey 
Davy  then  dips  the  letter  paper  into  the  residuum  of  that 
compound.  The  experiment  does  not  succeed,  and  no 
change  takes  place  in  the  color  of  the  paper. 

"  'Any  other  man  would  have  despaired.  Not  so  Sir 
Humphrey  Davy.  Drinking  off  a  glass  of  nitric  acid,  Sir 
Humphrey  Davy  grasps  the  paper  firmly  in  his  right  hand, 
and  taking  a  bottle  of  black  ink  in  his  left  hand,  dips  the 
paper  into  that  compound.  The  experiment  succeeds. 
The  paper  becomes  immediately  of  a  deep  black  color. 
Chemistry  becomes  a  science.  Imagine  the  joy  of  Davy. 
Sir  Humphrey  mixes  a  tumbler  of  sulphuric,  nitric,  and 
muriatic  acids,  and  crying  "Eureka  !"  drains  off  that  com 
pound.  Excitement  and  pleasure  combined,  throw  thai 
great  and  good  man  for  the  first  and  last  time  in  his  life, 
into  a  state  of  beastly  intoxication.'" 

" Bravo,  Wentworth  1"  cried  Rakey,  "what  a  memory 
you've  got !  You're  a  brick  made  of  Richmond  clay." 

' '  You  Southern  and  Western  men  have  very  humorous 
expressions,"  said  Wentworth.  "  Yesterday  I  called  on 
Gowan — you  know  him,  Van,  that  bright  fellow  from  Illi 
nois.  " 

"You  call  on  the  queerest  men,  Wentworth.  I  don't 
know  him." 

"Well,  tant  pis  pour  vous — you  ought  to  know  him. 
He's  one  of  the  most  talented  men  in  the  class.  We  were 
talking  about  his  life  out  West.  He  said  he  once 
*  wrestled '  for  six  months,  until  one  day  he  struck  a  rich 


68  Fair'  Harvard. 

uncle  between  wind  and  water,  who  fitted  him  for  col 
lege/ 

"What  did  he  mean  by  '  wrestling  ?'  "  inquired  Rakeman.' 

"He  said  '  wrestling '  was  not  to  be  fixed."  All  society, 
he  explained  to  me,  was  divided  into  three  classes  :  the 
'well  fixed/  the  'fixed/  and  the  'wrestling.'  Every 
one,  he  said,  belongs  to  one  of  these  three  classes.  If  a 
man  sees  a  year  of  a  house,  food,  clothing  and  coin  before 
him,  he  is  'well  fixed.'  If  he  sees  two  or  three  weeks,  he 
is  '  fixed.'  But  if  he  is  not  certain  of  a  night's  lodging  or  a 
day's  meals,  then  he  is  '  wrestling. '  Isn't  that  humor 
ous  ?" 

"I  confess  I  don't  see  anything  funny  in  it," said  Ayres. 
"I  don't  see  how  you  can  know  such  a  scrub." 

"You  will  probably  see  the  point,  Robin,  in  the  course 
of  a  year.  I  assure  you,  it  may  well  be  the  aim  of  any 
one  of  us  to  be  just  such  a  scrub. " 

"Come,  Wentworth,  don't  be  quarrelsome.  Ayres,  give 
us  a  song. 

"  Ubi  sunt  oil  pocula," 

hummed  the  tuneful  Southron.  "Sing  us  one  of  those 
Scotch  songs  of  yours."  Ayres  returned  to  his  former  state 
of  good  nature,  and  sang  for  half  an  hour. 

"Come  round  to  my  room,  Wentworth,  won't  you?" 
said  Van,  as  the  party  broke  up,  and  taking  Wentworth's 
arm,  he  walked  with  him  to  Browne's,  where  he  buried 
him  in  a  luxurious  arm-chair.  "I  wish  you  had  been 
here  night  before  last,  Wentworth,"  he  said.  "I  had  a 
boxing  soiree  in  my  room.  You'd  have  seen  a  'set-to* 


Fair  Harvard.  69 

between  Ayres,  the  Canary  or  Stallion,  and  Barney  Gumm, 
the  Cambridgeport  Chicken,  who  happened  to  drop  in. 
Rakeman  and  I  got  up  the  match  after  much  persuasion. 
Each  of  the  men  swung  his  arms  around  for  some  minutes 
like  windmills,  when  by  some  chance  the  Canary's  bunch 
of  fives  lit  on  the  Chicken's  peeper.  The  Chicken's  soul 
was  up  in  arms.  Retreating  a  few  yards,  he  levels  his  left 
arm  at  full  length,  like  a  spear  in  rest,  and  aiming  it  well, 
rides  full  tilt  at  the  Canary's  nob,  striking  it  fair  and  square 
and  spilling  much  good  claret.  By  the  way,  Wentworth, 
you  are  getting  to  be  such  a  'dig/  that  it  is  injuring  my 
reputation  as  a  'bird,'  to  know  you;  you  must  reform, 
old  man." 

"It  seems  to  be  rather  against  a  man  here  not  to  be  a 
dunce,"  said  Wentworth,  good  humoredly. 

' '  Well,  Wentworth,  you  know  that  -except  yourself  there 
aren't  any  good  fellows  in  the  first  half.  Now  don't  deny  it 
for  the  sake  of  seeing  what  you  can  say  for  a  bad  cause.  I 
feel  very  ' seedy/  to-night.  I  went  to  a  'bat'  in  Sweat- 
rame's  room  yesterday,  and  we  smoked  and  drank  till 
three.  It  was  very  slow.  Nutkins  was  there  and  Sweat- 
rame  got  him  very  well  'soaked/  That  Nutkins  is  the 
most  fortunate  man  in  the  class.  He  can  get  roaring 
drunk  on  the  best  liquor  for  twelve  cents.  Such  a  consti 
tution  is  a  saving  of  hundreds  of  dollars  a  year  to  a  fast 
man." 

"I  heard,"  said  Wentworth,  "  that  Sweatrame  tumbled 
out  of  the  window  about  fifteen  feet.  I  wonder  he  didn't 
break  his  neck." 


70  Fair  Harvard. 

"You'll  find  in  your  Bible  somewhere,  Wentworth,  that 
God  softens  the  ground  for  the  falling  inebriate,  or  tempers 
the  wind  to  the  shorn  lamb,  or  something  of  that  kind." 

"Van,  I  wish  to  propose  to  you,"  "Wentworth  shortly 
remarked,  ' '  to  carry  out  with  me  a  plan  for  physical  devel 
opment.  .  You're  one  of  the  best  boxers  and  athletes  in 
the  class,  and  I  want  you  to  assist  me. " 

"Well,  Wentworth,  I  suppose  I'm  fool  enough  to  do 
what  you  ask  for  a  little  while.  I  was  afraid  you  wanted 
me  to  learn  the  Iliad  by  heart. " 

"  You  must  agree,  Van,  every  other  week,  to  box  twice 
a  week,  and  to  take  a  run  or  a  row  or  a  ride  every  day. 
You  will  soon  be  in  splendid  condition." 

' '  You  will  soon  be  in  heaven  or  elsewhere,  Wentworth. 
Why,  you  are  making  a  prize-fighter  of  me." 

"Well,  Van,  it  is  better  to  be  a  prize-fighter,  than  such  a 
blase  fellow  as  you  are.  I've  been  reading  up  about  train 
ing.  I'm  going  to  begin  myself  next  Monday  and  practice 
it  every  other  week.  You  get  up  early  in  the  morning, 
take  a  short  walk  before  breakfast,  eat  a  raw  beefsteak,  and 
cracked  wheat  or  hominy,  then  you  run  or  row  for  a 
couple  of  hours,  and  after  resting,  drink  a  glass  of  sherry 
with  an  egg  in  it." 

"Stop,  Wentworth  !"  cried  Van  ;  "repeat  that  about  the 
sherry.  You  touch  me  there. " 

"You  dine  on  beef  or  mutton,  and  one  potato.  In  the 
afternoon  you  exercise  for  an  hour,  take  a  light  tea,  and  in 
the  evening  refresh  the  mind  by  reading  something  not  too 
profound,  like  the  'Wilkes'  Spirit.'" 


Fair  Harvard.  71 

"You  then,  Wentworth,  I  suppose,  place  a  volume  of 
Bancroft's  History  under  your  head,  and  sleep  like  Rip  Van 
Winkle.  There's  too  much  pleasure  in  the  life  you  describe 
for  a  moral  man  like  myself.  Can't  you  have  something 
for  a  foil  at  least  ?  You  might  introduce  a  treadmill  for 
the  time  not  occupied." 

"  You'll  soon  be  in  splendid  form,  Van.  You  know  if 
you  take  care  of  yourself  you'll  be  in  the  Harvard  in  a  year 
or  two." 

' '  Well,  Wentworth,  madness  is  catching.  I'll  try  it  with 
you  a  few  weeks.  What  an  odd  devil  you  are.  This 
week  you  are  a 'dig'  of 'digs/  Next  week  you  will  be 
sweating  like  Hercules.  I  suppose  you'll  take  up  a  fast 
line  soon,  and  trifle  with  the  affections  of  goodies,  or  have 
prayer  meetings  in  your  room  every  night.  Don't  hurry 
off,  old  man,  it's  early  yet.  Well,  '  au  reooir. '  I'll  see  you 
to-morrow."  And  Van  nodded  to  Wentworth,  who  bade 
his  friend  good-night,  and  returned  to  his  room  to  work 
on  his  Horace. 


CHAPTER  V. 

'  Largior  hie  campos  aether  et  luuiiim  vestit 
Purpureo." 

IAN,  are  you  going  to  Mrs.   Morris's  to-night  ?" 
Wentworth  asked  his  friend,  a  few  weeks  after 
their  pleasant  evening  at  Sweatrame's  room. 
"No,  I  don't  know  them,"  replied  Van.     "Come  round 
to  my  room  when  it's  over,  and  I'll  have  a  punch  ready  for 
you." 

As  this  was  the  first  large  party  at  which  Wentworth  had 
ever  been,  he  thought  :t  well  to  be  punctual.  At  the  hour 
of  eight,  therefore,  fro  presented  himself  at  Mrs.  Morris's 
door.  Finding  no  one  in  the  dressing-room,  and  fearing 
that  he  was  too  late,  he  pulled  on  his  gloves,  and  hastened 
to  the  drawing-room.  His  invitation  had  stated  that  there 
were  only  going  to  be  a  few  friend's.  Wentworth  had  not, 
however,  imagined  that  these  few  would  be  limited  to  him 
self  alone.  Yet,  as  he  entered  the  drawing-room,  this 
seemed  to  be  the  case.  Wentworth  gazed  at  the  mirrors, 
the  baskets  of  flowers,  and  the  white  cloth  stretched  across 
the  empty  floors,  and  the  shudder  which  passes  over  the 


Fair  Harvard.  73 

bravest  captain  at  the  sight  of  the  thirsty  saw-dust  sprinkling 
over  the  cleared  deck,  crept  over  him.  The  thought  then 
flashed  upon  him,  that  he  had  come  too  early.  "  What !" 
he  exclaimed,  "if  any  one  from  the  upper  classes  should 
know  that  I  came  before  the  family  were  dressed?  For 
heaven's  sake  let  me  get  out  of  this  place. "  Wentworth 
turned  and  was  making  for  the  door,  when  he  was  aware 
of  three  ladies  entering  the  room,  two  of  them  young,  and 
the  third  about  forty,  evidently  his  hostess,  Mrs.  Morris. 

"This  is  Mr.  Saulsbury,  is  it  not?"  said  the  eldest  of 
the  ladies,  coming  forward.  "I'm  delighted  to  see  you. 
You  have  neglected  us  shamefully  this  winter.  Miss 
Leigh,  let  me  introduce  Mr.  Saulsbury  to  you. " 

' '  Will  you  not  take  me  to  a  seat,  Mr.  Saulsbury  ?"  said 
Miss  Leigh,  as  Wentworth  bowed  to  her.  "One  gets  so 
tired  standing  before  dancing!"  and  at  this  request  Went 
worth  led  the  girl  to  the  window,  as  Morris  senior,  and  two 
or  three  of  his  classmates,  entered  the  room.  "I  have 
seen  you  somewhere  before,  I  am  sure,  Mr.  Saulsbury," 
said  Miss  Leigh,  seating  herself  on  a  lounge  in  a  bow  win 
dow,  which  looked  into  the  trees  and  shrubbery  which 
encircled  the  house.  "  Oh,  I  remember,  it  was  at  the  foot 
ball  game  last  autumn." 

"I  saw  a  great  many  stars  then,"  said  Wentworth,  laugh 
ing,  as  he  thought  of  his  personal  appearance  at  that  com 
bat. 

"You  ought  not  to  talk  to  ladies  in  that  way,  Mr. 
Saulsbury.  How  horrible  those  foot-ball  games  are! 


74  Fair  Harvard. 

They're  almost  like  prize-fights.  I  would  not  have  gone 
to  them,  if  I  had  known  what  they  were. " 

•'Though  persons  talk  against  prize-fighting,  they 
always  read  the  accounts  of  them  with  great  interest," 
said  Wentworth. 

"  I  confess  I  do  like  to  hear  about  such  things,"  said 
Miss  Leigh,  ' '  though  it  is  very  wicked  to  say  so. "  It  is 
so  pleasant  to  see  persons  in  earnest  about  anything  now-a- 
days.  The  men  one  meets  in  society  are  so  frivolous. 
They  do  nothing  but  dance,  and  talk  small:  talk.  Don't 
you  like  all  physical  exercises  ?  I  used  to  row  at  Newport 
last  summer.  I  enjoyed  it  ever  so  much.  I  wish  girls 
could  go  to  college,  and  call  round  on  each  other  in  their 
rooms,  and  talk  and  read.  A  lady's  time  is  all  taken  up 
in  making  and  receiving  formal  calls.  Do  you  like  the 
Seniors'  class  song?  I  heard  Mr.  Morris  singing  it  at  tea. 
A  classmate  of  yours,  a  Mr.  Sweatrame,  was  introduced  to 
me  the  other  evening.  What  a  horrible  story  was  told 
about  him  !  it  can't  be  true — that  he  was  seen  at  the 
theatre  intoxicated.  I  don't  think  society  ought  to  '  cut '  a 
man  for  being  once  intoxicated.  It  might  make  him 
desperate.  Though  I  don't  see  how  any  woman  could 
ever  marry  him.  Perhaps,  after  years  of  repentance  "- 

11 1  thought  ladies  preferred  fast  men,  Miss  Leigh. 
There  is  so  much  joy  over  finding  the  lost  sheep.  Rake- 
man  often  quotes  the  saying,  '  Reformed  rakes  make  the 
best  husbands. ' " 

'  *  Your  friend  must  be  a  very  wicked  fellow,  Mr.  Sauls- 
bury.  Is  he  as  handsome  and  clever  as  you  say  ?  I  should 


Fair  Harvard.  75 

like  to  see  him  very  much,  though  I  know  I  should  not 
like  him.  What  a  night  this  would  be  for  a  walk  on  the 
beach  at  Newport.  How  clearly  the  stars  shine  through 
the  trees." 

"Do  you  remember  the  most  beautiful  lines  in  Shake 
speare,  Miss  Leigh? 

— • '  Look  liow  the  floor  of  Heaven 

Is  thick  inlaid  with  patines  of  bright  gold  ; 
There's  not  the  smalldst  " 

"  Miss  Leigh,  may  I  have  the  pleasure  of  the  next  waltz 
with  you  ?"  broke  in  an  odious  voice,  and  to  Wentworth's 
rage,  he  saw  Seaborn  about  to  carry  off  his  prey. 

"Excuse  me  a  moment,  Mr.  Seaborn.  Mr.  Saulsbury, 
I  am  going  to  present  you  to  Miss  Campbell.  I'm  a  sort 
of  hostess,  you  know.  You'll  like  her  very  much.  She's 
very  bright.  Some  persons  call  her  a  flirt,  but  it  isn't 
true." 

"I  think  Mrs.  Morris  told  me  that  you  were  a  Junior, 
Mr.  Saulsbury,"  was  the  first  remark  Miss  Campbell  made 
to  Wentworth,  which  flattered  our  hero  immensely,  and  at 
once  set  him  at  his  ease.  ' '  I'm  so  glad  to  find  that  you're 
not  going  to  dance.  My  foot  was  nearly  crushed  by  the 
gentleman  with  whom  I  waltzed  last.  He  scarcely  seemed 
to  touch  the  floor." 

' '  He  must  be  a  very  graceful  dancer,  Miss  Campbell. " 

' '  Graceful  is  but  a  faint  term  to  express  his  skill,  I  as 
sure  you.  You  have  no  right  to  laugh  at  me.  You  have 
no  sympathy  for  suffering,  I  see." 

11  Not  when  it  is  the  cause  of  so  much  pleasure  to  me." 

"Men  are  always  so  selfish.     I  shan't  be  able  to  dance 


76  Fair   Harvard. 

before  the  German.  I  have  often  heard  Mrs.  Morris  speak 
of  you.  Why  didn't  you  go  out  this  winter  ?  Men  who 
can  talk  ought  to  make  it  a  principle  to  go  into  society. 
There  are  so  few  men  who  can  do  anything  but  dance. 
Isn't  Miss  Leigh  charming?  She  is  so  full  of  life.  She  is 
a  great  favorite  with  both  men  and  women,  which  is  very 
rare  ;  don't  you  think  so  ?" 

Thus  Miss  Campbell  talked  on,  and  Wentworth  listened 
to  her  with  admiration,  careless  of  the  dancers  whirling 
madly  past  him.  Miss  Campbell  had  that  power  of  sym 
pathizing  with  her  hearer,  which  is  so  dangerous  to  the 
peace  of  mankind.  She  asked  Wentworth  about  his  fa 
vorite  authors  and  pursuits,  and  flattered  his  vanity  by 
praising  what  he  himself  admired.  And  soon  our  hero 
found  himself  talking  with  an  earnestness  which  surprised 
the  reticent  New  England  boy.  Miss  Campbell  had  also 
a  bewitching  way  of  raising  her  eyelids  as  she  spoke,  and 
darting  a  clear  glance  from  her  almond-shaped  eyes  which 
impressed  the  meaning  of  her  words,  and  the  brilliant 
yet  soft  beauty  of  her  eyes,  with  equal  force  upon  her 
hearer. 

The  words  of  a  beautiful  woman  !  With  what  an  ecstatic 
charm  do  they  touch  the  soul  of  a  boy  !  Had  Mr.  A  or 
Mr.  B  said  the  same  things,  their  remarks  would  appear 
little  better  than  commonplace.  But  spoken  by  a  beautiful 
woman,  each  word  as  it  issues  from  her  lips  clothes  itself 
with  the  beauty  of  its  source.  The  last  illusion  to  leave 
the  mind  of  youth,  is  that  a  beautiful  woman  can  ever  be 
stupid.  I  have  known  college  boys  even  distrust  their 


Fair  Harvard.  77 

own  talents,  sooner  than  admit  this  saddest  of  truths.  If 
such  is  the  power  of  beautiful  stupidity,  the  effect  of  Miss 
Campbell,  who  was  beautiful  and  by  no  means  stupid,  upon 
the  susceptible  mind  of  our  Freshman,  can  be  readily 
imagined.  A  few  of  Miss  Campbell's  sentences  seemed 
more  precious  to  him  than  all  the  homilies  he  remembered 
to  have  heard.  "I  had  rather/'  he  thought  as  he  watched 
the  strings  of  pearls  dropping  from  the  kiss-worthy  lips  of 
the  arch  beauty  before  him — "I  had  rather  hear  Miss 
Campbell  for  half  an  hour,  than  listen  to  the  Reverend 
Doctor  Eider  Down  week  together. "  And  yet  the  clergy 
man  under  whom  Wentworth  had  sat  from  his  youth  up, 
was  one  of  the  main  pillows  of  the  Church.  So  insidious  is 
the  influence  of  woman  ! 

The  time  passed  rapidly,  and  Wentworth  was  greatly 
surprised  when  Miss  Campbell's  partner  for  the  German 
came  to  take  her  to  supper — for  which  ceremony  he  had 
also  engaged  her — and  to  end  our  hero's  pleasure  for  the 
evening.  After  supper  the  chairs  were  arranged  for  the 
dance,  and  Wentworth  took  his  station  among  the  un 
wholesome  cluster  of  damp  wall-weeds  near  the  door,  and 
addressed  now  and  then  a  few  words  to  an  ancient  duenna, 
who  held  her  seat  near  him.  It  is  a  much  greater  pleasure 
to  the  writer  of  this  history,  and  doubtless  to  its  readers 
(if  any)  to  see  the  enjoyment  of  others  than  to  engage  in  it 
himself.  Wentworth,  however,  had  not  yet  attained  to 
this  state  of  Christian  perfection.  As  he  stood  among  the 
uneasy  throng  by  the  door,  though  his  face  still  preserved 
the  polite  and  vacuous  expression  which  society  enjoins, 


78  Fair  Harvard. 

beneath  the  surface  were  raging  the  fiercest  passions  of 
envy  and  jealousy. 

Much  our  hero  wondered  at  the  audacity  of  Brandreth 
or  Seaborn  as  they  whirled  the  fragile  compounds  of  muslin 
and  flesh  on  their  reckless  course,  now  scouring  the  fender, 
now  shaving  with  flying  skirt  some  frightened  father 
stranded  on  the  shore.  As  Miss  Leigh,  who  danced  with  a 
grace  only  girls  born  at  Papantis'  can  attain,  floated  swiftly 
by  him,  or  Miss  Campbell's  silver  feet  wove  a  magic  web 
for  the  entanglement  of  the  hearts  of  youth,  Wentworth's 
body  hugged  the  wall,  to  avoid  being  swept  away  by  the 
curling  waves  of  the  tempestuous  petticoat,  but  his  soul 
swelled  high  with  rage. 

The  social  position  of  a  Freshman  is  indeed  not  envi 
able.  The  fair  sex,  whose  opinions  are  mostly  the  shadows 
of  the  foul,  look  on  a  Freshman  with  that  worst  of  senti 
ments,  pity.  They  regard  him  with  a  sort  of  motherly  affec 
tion  which,  though  the  holiest  of  feelings,  excites  '  hor- 
resco  refer  ens,1  nothing  but  the  bitterest  ingratitude  in  the 
breasts  of  its  objects. 

Wentworth  had  also  this  evening  suffered  as  he  fancied 
the  Olympian  superiority  of  the  Senior,  which  disdains  ex 
pression,  the  sedate  pride  of  the  Junior,  and,  hardest  to  bear, 
the  parvenu  conceit  of  the  Sophomore.  All  these  our 
hero  had  endured,  and  enduring,  plumed  his  philosophic 
pride,  trusting  in  the  change  revolving  time  would  bring. 
Suddenly  he  beheld  a  sight  which  caused  the  room  to 
swim  in  darkness  around  him. 

There  dwelt  in  the  aristocratic  village  of  Longwood,  rich 


Fair  Harvard.  79 

son  of  a  richer  father,  a  youth  named  Gully  Bustin. 
Twice  had  the  mounting  ambition  of  this  young  man  tempted 
him  to  try  to  enter  Harvard  College.  Twice  had  he  been 
rejected  and  relegated  to  his  former  ignominious  status.  Mr. 
Bustin  had  rather  agood  face  and  figure;  but  he  wore  a  black 
lace  neck-tie  ;  nor  was  his  family  of  very  ancient  origin.  All 
his  sins,  however,  which  were  many,  were  forgiven  him  by 
the  fair,  for  he  danced  much  and  well.  As  Wentworth 
surveyed  the  black  cares  attached  to  their  brilliant  pleasures 
flitting  past  him,  he  caught  sight  of  Master  Gully  Bustin,  of 
whom  he  had  heard  mention,  dancing  with  Miss  Campbell, 
and  as  much  at  his  ease  as  a  Senior  or  a  prince. 

"A  sub-Fresh!"  he  muttered,  and  the  thought  that  he, 
Wentworth  Saulsbury,  member  of  the  University,  was  idly 
taking  root  upon  the  shore,  while  a  nameless  being— a 
sub-Freshman— was  braving  it  upon  the  open  sea,  proved 
too  much  for  his  philosophy.  Wentworth  swore  a  terrible 
oath,  which  shook  all  the  barbers'  poles  in  the  country, 
that  never  should  razor  mow  the  bristling  forest  of  his  chin 
until  he  had  learnt  to  dance  with  grace  and  ease.  "I  will 
make  myself  the  best  dancer  in  college,"  he  resolved, 
"and  waltz  once  with  Miss  Campbell.  Then  I  will  stand 
by  the  door  and  let  all  the  girls  languish  for  me."  Thus 
resolving,  he  bowed  to  the  ancient  duenna  and  walked  to 
the  supper  room. 

"How  are  you,  Saulsbury?  I'm  glad  to  see  that  you 
have  brains  enough  not  to  dance.  Take  a  glass  of  wine 
with  me/'  said  Morris,  pouring  out  a  glass  of  Burgundy  for 


80  Fair  Harvard. 

our  hero,  and  filling  the  glasses  for  the  Seniors  who  were 
standing  round  him. 

"  '  Hands  to  hands,  boys,  hearts  to  hearts,  boys.' 

"  We  shan't  have  many  more  suppers  together,"  he  added 
with  a  sigh. 

''I  wish  I  could  exchange  places  with  you,  Saulsbury. 
You  have  the  pleasantest  part  of  your  life  before  you." 

Wentworth  remained  in  the  supper-room  a  few  minutes, 
and  then,  begging  Morris  to  excuse  him  to  his  mother, 
whom  he  would  not  disturb,  he  took  his  hat  and  coat,  and 
stole  quietly  into  the  free  air.  Remembering  his  engage 
ment  with  Van  Courtland,  he  walked  gloomily  towards  his 
room  at  Brown's. 

"  Oh,  the  little  black  bull  came  down  from  the  mountain!" 

sang  the  well  known  voice  of  Rakeman,  as  Wentworth  en 
tered. 

"How  are  you,  Wentworth!"  cried  Van.  "I  order  it 
up.  Make  yourself  at  home,  old  man.  We  shall  finish 
our  game  directly. " 

Wentworth  seated  himself  and  watched  Van  and  Rake 
man  at  play. 

"Order  up  a  right  bower,  Van?"  said  Rakeman; 
"you're  mad.  See,  I've  euchred  you.  Come,  take  your 
revenge  ;  I'm  ten  dollars  in. " 

1 '  No  more  to-night, "  answered  Van.  ' '  You  know  we 
agreed  to  stop  at  half  past  twelve.  I  always  make  it  a  rule 
to  stop  at  the  time  fixed,  if  I'm  a  loser.  The  man  who 
wins  can't  propose  to  stop,  you  know." 

"Well,  Van,  you're  a  martinet.     Mix  up  the  punch,  old 


Fair  Harvard.  81 

man,  and  be  temperate  in  the  use  of  water.  What  sort  of 
a  time  did  you  have,  Wentworth  ?  You  look  like  a  poor 
man  who  has  just  become  the  father  of  three  healthy  chil 
dren.  Van  says  you've  been  at  Mrs.  Morris's  !  Did  you 
see  any  pretty  girls  there  ?" 

"There  was  a  Miss  Campbell  there,  Rake,  who  is  a 
fearfully  handsome  girl.  She  has  a  figure  like  one  of 
Guide's  Hours,  and  her  eyes — do  you  remember  that 
description  in  the  Arabian  Nights  ?  '  God  said  of  her  eyes, 
Met  them  be/ and  they  were,  affecting  men's  hearts  with 
the  potency  of  wine. ' ' 

' '  Stop, "  cried  Rakeman.  ' '  You  make  me  uneasy ; 
you  remind  me  of  what  has  made  my  life  a  curse  ;"  and  a 
shadow  flitted  over  the  jolly  face  of  the  Southerner,  for 
like  all  men  at  his  time  of  life,  Rakeman  had  suffered 
from  the  fatal  effects  of  the  tender  passion.  ' '  Money 
won  at  play,"  Rakeman  continued,  surveying  his  earn 
ings  with  pride,  "I  consider  consecrated.  It  should 
be  spent  only  for  sacred  objects.  The  oyster  is,  I  think  on 
the  whole,  the  noblest  work  of  God,  and  I  propose  to  in 
vite  the  two  club-tables  to  an  oyster  supper  at  my  room 
next  Wednesday.  Here's  to  you,  fellows !  Van,  this 
punch  is  worthy  of  your  guest ;"  and  Rakeman  drained  a 
tumbler  of  Van's  brave  punch  with  a  generous  relish. 

"Van,"  said  Wentworth,  "I  want  to  go  on  a  lark. 
The  sight  of  a  sub-Freshman  at  Mrs.  Morris'  filled  me 
with  disgust.  I  must  have  a  change  of  scene.  Sup 
pose  we  go  to  New  York,  Friday  night.  We  can  get 


82  Fair  Harvard. 

back  Monday  morning,  and  only  cut  one  recitation. 
There  are  no  good  tailors  in  Boston,  you  know." 

' '  Are  you  going  to  take  up  the  line  of  a  swell  ?"  said 
Van,  laughing.  "I  told  you  you  would  come  to  that 
soon. " 

"Another  line  !"  cried  Rakeman.  "I'll  go  with  you, 
though.  It  will  be  good  fun. " 

' '  I  used  to  meet  a  Miss  Amy  Saulsbury,  last  winter, " 
said  Van  ;  "she  was  a  charming  girl,  and  a  great  belle." 

"She's,  a  cousin  of  mine.  I  haven't  seen  her  for  three 
years.  We'll  make  her  give  us  a  certificate  that  we  have 
attended  church  while  we're  there.  But  I  must  be  off,  old 
man.  It's  nearly  two  o'clock. " 

"So  must  I,"  said  Rakeman.  "Good  night,  fellows  ;" 
and  Wentworth  and  Rakeman  took  a  last  glass  of  punch, 
and  made  their  way  to  their  rooms,  leaving  Van  to  retire  to 
his  peaceful  couch. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"Hermes  omnia  solus,  et  ter  unus." 

WONDER  what  makes  me  feel  so  fearfully 
blue/'  remarked  our  hero  late  one  Summer's 
night,    throwing   himself   back   in   his   easy- 
looking  at  the  pleasant  stretch  of  country  on 
either  side  the  azure  Charles.     It  was  the  last  day  of  Went- 
worth's  second  term  in  college,  and  he  had  just  returnee 
from  a  supper,  given  by  him   to   his   club-table,  at   Par 
ker's.     The  windows  were  open,   and  he  listened   a   few 
minutes  to  the  delicate  noises  that  tickled  the  ear  of  Night 
—the  voice  of  the  frog  the  organist,  the  cricket  with  his 
merry  fiddle,  and  the  love-sick  tree-toad,  without  experien 
cing  great  relief.      ' '  I  can't  think  what  makes  me  so  out  of 
spirits,"  he  repeated,  with  an  effort  to  shake  off  his  despon 
dency.      ' '  What  a  good  song  Rakeman  sang  to-night. 

•  Ye  brothers,  when  I'm  no  more  drinking,' 

-Let  me  think  of  something  pleasant.  What  a  jolly 
time  we  had  in  New  York,  and  what  a  pretty  girl  Cousin 
Amy  has  grown  to  be  1"  and  Wentworth's  mind  recurred  to 


84  Fair  Harvard. 

a  scene  he  well  remembered.  A  bright  graceful  girl,  with 
inviting  lips,  was  standing  opposite  him.  "Don't  you 
know,  Wentworth,  it  is  improper  to  hold  a  lady's  hand  so 
long?  See,  you  have  bruised  it,  you're  so  strong,"  and  the 
girl  leant  nearer  our  hero,  to  show  him  the  mischief 
already  done.  "Why,  Wentworth,"  she  exclaimed,  darting 
back, — "How  dare  you  !  We  are  too  old  for  such  ceremo 
nies.  You  Bostonians  are  all  barbarians.  Be  sure  and 
come  to  see  me  to-morrow,  and  I'll  try  and  reform  you, 
though  I've  little  hope  !" — and  the  girl  blushed,  and  shook 
her  head  reprovingly  at  her  cousin,  as  he  took  his  leave. 
This  reminiscence  lessened  Wentworth's  gloom,  and  he 
looked  around  his  room  in  better  spirits. 

"How  attached  you  become  to  your  room,  after  living 
in  it  a  year,"  he  mused,  gazing  at  his  books  and  pictures 
with  the  kindly  eye  of  possession. 

The  room  justified  some  degree  of  pleasure.  Its  origi 
nal  furniture  had  long  since  disappeared,  and  had  given 
place  to  heavy  oaken  tables,  lounges,  and  easy-chairs.  A 
large  carved  book-case  stood  against  the  wall,  on  each  side 
of  the  entrance,  filled  with  rare  editions  of  books,  richly 
bound.  The  side  of  the  room  opposite  the  door,  was 
nearly  covered  with  a  huge  photograph  of  the  Roman  Fo 
rum,  flanked  by  a  bronze  statue  of  the  Venus  de  Milo,  and 
a  dying  gladiator  of  the  same  metal.  Engravings  of  no 
little  value,  were  hung  thickly  around  the  walls,  with  two 
or  three  landscape  paintings  by  American  artists.  Among 
these  as  foils  shone  opposite  the  mantel,  a  proof  copy  of 
Miiller's  Madonna  di  San  Sisto. 


Fair  Harvard.  85 

Wentworth  surveyed  his  treasures  a  few  minutes  with  re 
lief,  but  could  not  keep  his  mind  from  recurring  to  his  life 
during  the  past  term,  the  thought  of  which,  though  he 
would  not  confess  it,  weighed  upon  his  conscience.  Dur 
ing  the  first  two  months  of  the  term,  indeed,  our  hero  had 
carried  out  his  plans  of  study,  and  exercise,  with  great 
regularity,  one  week  reciting  his  Horace  with  Hamilton, 
and  studying  far  into  the  night,  and  the  next  rowing,  spar 
ring,  and  running  with  Van  and  Bowyer. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  second  month,  however,  Went 
worth  had.  taken  up  a  third  line — that  of  a  swell.  This 
character  required  him  to  give,  and  attend  pleasant  din 
ners  and  suppers,  at  his  own  or  his  friends'  rooms,  at  ho 
tels  in  breezy  Boston,  at  Point  Shirley,  or  whatever  place 
promised  good  cheer.  It  also  made  him  intimate  with  a 
great  many  fashionable  tailors  in  town,  upon  whom  he 
levied  for  all  varieties  of  cloth — and  color  to  hit  the  chang 
ing  hour  and  season. 

Our  hero's  literary  tastes  made  him  also  a  great  con 
noisseur  in  large  paper  copies,  white  vellum,  and  the 
secrets  of  the  book  trade,  and  in  the  selection  of  fine  en 
gravings,  and  the  like,  the  results  of  which  soon  enlivened 
the  stern  simplicity  of  his  room. 

This  third  line,  moreover,  obliged  him  to  attend  the  dif 
ferent  places  of  amusement,  the  theatres  or  operas,  which 
the  capital  offered,  and  to  learn  to  distinguish  between  the 
stars  that  shone,  or  the  voices  that  warbled  from  time  to 
time  upon  their  stages.  In  fact  all  the  pleasures  which  it 
becomes  a  man  of  the  world  to  seek  and  enjoy,  Went- 


86  Fair  Harvard. 

worth  had  plunged  into  with  the   hearty  recklessness   of 
youth. 

" Dum  vivimus,  vivamus,"  was  a  quotation  at  that  time 
often  upon  his  lips.  His  erudition  had  discovered  this 
saying,  and  the  knowledge  of  Latin  one  gains  at  college 
enabled  him  to  quote  it  with  great  accuracy.  It  soon, 
however,  proved  so  much  pleasanter  to  ride  than  to  run, 
to  dine  than  to  fast,  and  to  dress  like  a  bird  of  paradise, 
than  in  the  shirt  and  pantaloons  of  a  training  man,  and  to 
do  any  of  these  things  than  to  learn  Latin  odes  by  heart, 
that  Wentworth's  third  line  soon  swallowed  up  the  other  two. 

These  various  pursuits,  though  developing  doubtless 
the  harmonious  man,  took  away  greatly  from  Wentworth's 
rank,  which  fell  from  near  the  head  of  the  class,  towards 
the  foot  of  the  first  half.  They  also,  as  a  shrewd  observer 
might  readily  guess,  cost  a  great  deal  of  coin  or  credit. 
Wentworth's  allowance  was  a  thousand  dollars  a  term, 
which  was  large  for  a  college-boy  in  America.  His 
father  was  known,  moreover,  to  be  one  of  the  wealthiest 
men  in  the  State,  and  Wentworth  found  little  difficulty  in 
obtaining  credit.  His  name  adorned  many  pages  of  the 
books  of  the  confiding  stable-keepers  of  Cambridge  and 
Boston.  It  might  also  have  been  discovered  by  the 
curious  in  numerous  tailors'  interesting  unpublished 
MSS.,  and  was  well  known  to  hotel -keepers,  tobaccon 
ists,  wine  merchants,  "  et  id  genus  o??ine" 

To  be  deeply  in  debt  is  a  great  advantage  to  a  young  man 
in  any  profession  in  life.  It  causes — one  can  readily  see 
— a  large  circle  of  men  to  take  a  deeper  interest  in  your 


Fair  Harvard.  87 

life  and  prosperity,  than  can  be  secured  by  any  other 
course.  It  is  difficult  for  a  college-boy,  however,  to  see 
and  act  upon  this  truth.  Wentworth,  instead  of  growing 
more  cheerful  as  the  term  wore  on,  and  his  debts  in 
creased,  became  haunted  with  gloomy  fits,  which  he  in 
vain  endeavored  to  throw  off,  by  increased  dissipation.  In 
spite  of  these,  however,  his  loss  of  rank  and  open-handed 
generosity,  had  made  him  a  great  favorite  in  his  class,  and 
he  had,  with  Van,  Bowyer,  Rakeman,  Swcatrame,  and  five 
others,  been  chosen  as  the  first  ten  of  the  Institute  of  1770, 
the  great  ambition  of  the  Freshman  year. 

The  last  few  days  of  the  term,  Wentworth  had  felt  unu 
sually  despondent.  Though  he  tried  to  forget  his  mis 
spent  months,  the  retrospect  was  continually  forcing  itself 
upon  him.  As  he  sat  in  his  room  this  last  evening  of  the 
term,  the  contrast  of  what  he  had  done,  with  what  he  had 
hoped  to  do,  of  his  idle  waste  of  time  and  talents,  with  his 
high  ambition,  and  proud  aims — "Don't  think  of  it,"  he 
said  to  himself- — "Regret  but  doubles  evil.  No  one  can 
say  I  have  not  enjoyed  myself.  Pleasure  a-t  least  is  a  reality. 
Hang  it !  I  keep  thinking  of  Hamilton  to-night.  I  won 
der  whether  he  has  got  back  from  Philadelphia.  I  hope 
his  father  is  better.  Somehow  I  don't  feel  us  though  I 
knew  Lewis  as  well  as  I  used  to.  These  religious  fellows 
never  can  be  friends  of  men  of  the  world.  Hallo !  what's 
this  ?  A  letter  from  father,  and  one  from  Hamilton  !"  he 
exclaimed,  catching  sight  of  two  letters  on  the  table. 

"  My  dear  son,"  began  the  letter  which  Wentworth  first 
opened — "You  will  regret  to  learn,  as  I  to  write,  that  ow- 


88  Fair  Harvard. 

ing  to  the  crisis  from  which  the  country  is  suffering,  I  have 
been  obliged  to  greatly  curtail  my  expenses.  My  property, 
as  you  know,  consists  mostly  of  'manufacturing  slocks. 
These  have  paid  no  dividends  during  the  past  six  months, 
and  it  is  impossible  to  tell  how  soon  they  will  recommence. 
I  can  easily  allow  you  $500  for  your  next  year  at  college, 
without  injury  to  your  mother  and  sister.  If  you  can  live 
on  that  sum,  you  may  make  arrangements  to  return  to 
Cambridge  next  year.  Otherwise,  you  must  wait  till  our 
affairs  look  up  a  little.  Your  mother  sends  her  love  to 
you. 

"  Your  affectionate  father, 

L.   SAULSBURY." 


"Heugh!"  cried  Wentworth,  "  lfuit  Ilium.'  What 
next  !"  and  he  opened  the  other  letter  —  • 

"My  dear  Wentworth/'  it  began,  "  I  returned  to  Cam 
bridge  to-day.  Father  died  three  days  ago,  after  a  great 
deal  of  pain.  It  was  found  on  his  death  that  business 
anxiety  had  caused  his  sickness,  and  that  nearly  all  his 
property  had  been  lost  by  the  panic.  Enough  has  been 
saved  to  enable  mother  to  live  comfortably,  but  I  shall  be 
obliged  to  leave  college.  My  uncle  has  offered  me  a  place 
in  his  store  in  Philadelphia,  as  a  clerk,  which  I  have  ac 
cepted.  I  called  to  see  you  twice  this  evening,  but  did 
not  find  you  in.  Will  you  not  do  me  the  favor  to  sell  my 
books  and  furniture  and  send  the  money  to  my  address 
at  Philadelphia,  as  I  wish  to  start  for  home  early  to-morrow 
morning.  I  hoped  to  win  a  name  here,  but  it  has  been 


Fair  Harvard.  89 

ordered  otherwise.     You,  my  dear  friend,  will,  I  am  sure, 
use  the  golden  opportunity,  the  loss  of  which  fills  me  with  so 
much  regret.     Promise  to  write  me  often,  and  believe  me, 
"  Always  your  sincere  friend, 

' '  LEWIS  HAMILTON.  " 

"Poor  Lewis  !"  cried  Wentworth.  "Clerk  !  the  devil ! 
Why  doesn't  his  uncle  keep  him  in  college  !"  and  our  hero 
jumped  from  his  seat,  seized  his  hat,  and  ran  toward  Har 
vard  Block. 

"Why,  Wentworth!  I'm  delighted  to  see  you!"  said 
Lewis,  opening  the  door  at  his  vigorous  knocking.  "I 
was  afraid  I  should  not  see  you  again  for  a  long  time. " 

"What's  this,  Lewis,  about  your  going  away?"  Went 
worth  broke  out  with. 

' '  Don't  talk  about  it,  Wentworth.  It  cuts  me  very 
much.  I  have  learnt  to  love  the  dear  old  place,"  and 
Lewis  turned  aside  from  his  friend,  like  all  boys  ashamed 
to  show  feeling.  The  young  fellow  looked  thin  and  worn 
with  watching,  and  the  loss  of  his  father  had  told  upon  him 
sadly.  "You  can't  think,  Wentworth,"  he  said  shortly, 
with  his  old  pleasant  voice  weakened  somewhat  by  exhaus 
tion,  ' '  how  much  I  thank  you  for  coming  round  to-night. 
Sit  down  and  we'll  have  one  of  our  old  talks  again.  It 
seems  an  age  since  we  used  to  talk  together  so  earnestly, 
so  many  things  have  happened, "  and  a  sharp  look  of  pain 
ful  memories  passed  over  Lewis's  face  which  sent  a  sudden 
pang  to  Wentworth's  heart.  "But  we  won't  speak  of  those 
things, "  he  added  softly,  "  It  is  of  you  I  want  to  speak, 


90  Fair  Harvard. 

Wentworth  ;  promise  me,  my  dear  friend,  that  you  will  be 
true  to  yourself,  and  strive  to  follow  the  paths  your  ambi 
tion  points  out,  and  accomplish  the  good  we  so  often 
talked  about.  I  feel  that  I  am  taking  a  great  liberty  with 
you,  Wentworth.  But  you  know  I  love  you,  and  I  shall 
not  see  you  again  for  a  long  time,  I  fear." 

"Liberty!  Lewis?  You  could  not  take  any  liberty 
with  me,"  said  Wentworth,  much  affected.  "  It  is  my  fault 
if  any  cloud  has  come  between  us." 

"I  don't  so  much  mind  it  in  other  men,  Wentworth, 
but  you  are  at  heart  so  full  of  fine  impulses  and  high 
aims,  that  it  wounds  me  to  see  you  waste  the  talents  God 
has  given  you  for  the  noblest  uses.  I  only  beg  you,  as 
you  are  generous  to  every  one  else,  to  be  at  least  just  to 
yourself. " 

Wentworth  looked  down  a  few  minutes  in  silence. 

"Believe  me,  Lewis,  I  feel  what  you  say  deeply,  and 
thank  you  kindly  for  it,  and  shall  always  remember  it.  I 
may  as  well,"  he  added  with  a  smile,  "make  a  virtue  of 
necessity.  Father  writes  me  that  all  his  property  is  worth 
less  at  present,  so  I  have  nothing  to  do  but  work." 

"Nay,  Wentworth,  what  you  do  will  be  prompted  by 
your  own  honor,  not  by  circumstance,  I  am  sure  of  that. 
I  am  sorry  to  hear  what  you  say.  I  never  knew  the  value 
of  money,  until  I  saw  my  education  cut  off  for  the  want 
of  it." 

"Why  do  you  leave  college,  Lewis?" 

"It  can't  be  helped,  Wentworth.  Mother  begged  me 
to  take  her  money,  but  of  course  I  couldn't  do  that.  I 
asked  my  uncle  to  lend  me  some,  but  he  said  he  would 


Fair  Harvard.  91 

sooner  teach  a  boy  to  sweep  a  store,  than  to  go  to  college. 
Don't  say  any  more  about  it,  my  dear  fellow.  I  must 
leave. " 

"But,  Lewis,  you  shan't  leave  !"  cried  Wentworth,  jump 
ing  from  his  seat.  "As  for  that  uncle  of  yours,  I'd  cut  his 
tongue  out  if  I  had  the  power,  and  set  him,  for  the  rest  of 
his  life,  to  grinding  a  hand-organ  !  Such  men  are  worse 
than  ^cut-throats — I  beg  your  pardon,  old  man,  I  don't 
mean  to  say  anything  disrespectful  of  your  relatives." 

' '  It  is  hard  to  take  such  a  comparison  as  a  compliment, 
Wentworth,"  said  Lewis  laughing,  "but  I'll  do  my  best. 
Don't  say  anything  more  about  my  leaving.  Talk  of" — 

"But  I  tell  you  1"  exclaimed  our  hero,  "  that  you  shan't 
leave.  What,  are  you  going  to  sacrifice  your  hopes  and 
your  future  for  the  sake  of  a  few  paltry  dollars  ?" 

' '  Wentworth,  you  know  it  can't  be  helped.  Don't  talk 
about  it." 

"But  it  can  be  helped,  Lewis.  Next  year  you  shall 
chum  with  me.  Father  will  allow  me  five  hundred  dollars, 
and  I  can  borrow  more,  if  necessary.  We'll  take  a  cheap 
room  somewhere,  and  board  ourselves.  We  can  get  schol 
arships  too,  you  know,  next  year. " 

"  You  are  too  generous,  Wentworth/'  and  Lewis  again 
turned  away  his  head.  "I  always  knew  that  you  had  a 
great  soul.  If  your  father  had  not  met  with  this  loss !  But 
now  I  cannot  for  a  moment  think  of  it  except  to  thank 
you  with  all  my  heart." 

' '  But  I  say  you  shall  thjnk  of  it,  Lewis.  Talk  about 
my  wasting  my  talents  !  You,  who  are  every  way  my  supe- 


92  Fair  Harvard. 

rior,  do  you  propose  to  sacrifice  your  past  and  future  to  a 
paltry  pride  ?  If  you  educate  yourself  you  can  make  your 
self  a  name,  and  what  you  prize  more,  become  a  power  to 
advance  the  cause  of  truth." 

' '  Stop  !  stop  !  Wentworth  !  Don't  talk  in  that  way. 
You  almost  persuade  me  to  act  dishonorably." 

"  Dishonorably,  Lewis  ?  What  do  you  mean  ?  To  re 
fuse  to  accept  a  favor  from  a  friend,  seems  to  me  to  be  dis 
honorable.  It  shows  you  distrust  him. " 

"You  don't  mean  that,  Wentworth,"  said  Lewis,  look 
ing  him  earnestly  in  the  face. 

"Yes,  I  do  mean  it,  Lewis.  Are  there  no  laws  of 
honor,  except  those  of  the  market?  Friendship  has  its 
laws  as  well  as  commerce.  Had  you  offered  me  the  same 
thing  I  should  have  accepted  it,  and  not  nursed  a  mean 
pride,  at  the  expense  of  my  friendship.  You  are  not  so 
good  a  friend  to  me  as  I  thought  you,  Lewis. " 

"Wentworth,  you  know  I  am  your  friend.  Would 
you  on  your  honor  have  accepted  such  a  favor  from 
me?" 

"  On  my  honor,  as  a  gentleman,  Lewis." 

"And  should  you  not  respect  me  less?" 

' '  I  should  never  offer  to  do  anything  for  a  friend  which 
could  lessen  my  respect  for  him." 

' '  Wentworth,  I  will  do  as  you  ask  me  ;  I  feel  too  grate 
ful  to  thank  you. " 

"Bravo,  Lewis  !"  cried  his  friend  in  great  delight.  "If 
you're  such  a  stickler,  you  can  pay  me  some  day — yes,  by 
Jove  !  with  interest — usurious — ten  per  cent ,  do  you  hear  ? 


Fair  Harvard.  93 

You  know  we  Yankees  are  such  mean  fellows  !"  and  Went- 
worth  fairly  hugged  his  friend  in  delight. 

"  Wentworth,  you've  nearly  broken  my  ribs,  you  villain. 
I  feel  as  if  I  had  a  new  lease  of  life.  How  mad  uncle  will 
be.  Hurrah,  old  man  !"  and  Hamilton  began,  to  his  own 
surprise,  to  sing  "  Old  Harvard." 

The  boys  smoked  and  talked  an  hour  or  more,  when 
Wentworth  took  his  leave. 

"I  shall  make  something  of  myself/  Lewis,  if  I  have 
you  with  me,"  he  said  to  his  friend,  as  he  bade  him  farewell. 

Wentworth  was  soon  sound  asleep,  but  Lewis  opened 
his  Bible  and  a  long  hour  read  its  sacred  pages  ;  then  giv 
ing  thanks  for  the  new  hope  this  night  had  brought  forth, 
he  said  his  prayers  and  went  to  bed. 

The  next  morning,  Wentworth  sent  invitations  to  his 
various  creditors,  inviting  them  to  call  and  see  him.  They 
came  with  praiseworthy  alacrity,  and  expressed  the  most  sin 
cere  sympathy  for  the  misfortunes  of  his  father.  Went 
worth  proposed  that  such  of  his  property  as  remained  in 
its  original  form,  should  be  returned  to  its  former  owners, 
and  said  he  thought  he  could  pay  the  balance  of  the  claims 
in  the  course  of  a  year  or  more.  This  proposal  greatly 
pleased  the  venders  of  books,  engravings,  furniture,  and 
articles  of  a  tangible  character.  But  grief  arose  in  Mr. 
Gorbold,  stable-keeper  in  breezy  Boston,  and  his  heart 
within  his  hairy  breast  was  troubled  with  doubt  as  to  this 
method  of  resurrection  for  his  property.  The  spirit  of  re 
volt  spread  to  Mr.  Funkhauser,  tobacconist,  and  Mr. 
Cabus,  wine  merchant,  and  others  who  were  unable  to  see 


94  Fair  Harvard. 

the  benefit  which  would  accrue  to  them  from  this  arrange 
ment. 

Wentworth  reasoned  fairly  with  them  all,  and  explained 
his  inability  to  pay  them,  which  he  greatly  regretted,  and 
most  of  them  took  leave  of  him  with  friendly  feeling.  Mr. 
Gorbold,  and  three  or  four  others,  however,  remained  after 
the  respectable  throng  of  creditors  had  gone,  and  urged 
their  claims  somewhat  loudly  upon  Wentworth's  attention. 

Our  hero's  strength  could  have  been  guessed  only  by  a 
shrewd  observer,  and  the  more  angry  he  became,  the  more 
quiet  grew  his  manner.  As  Mr.  Gorbold's  voice  waxed 
loud,  and  almost  insolent,  Wentworth  gently  whispered  to 
him. 

' '  My  good  fellow,  I  never  allow  any  one  to  raise  his 
voice  in  my  room." 

"You  don't,  don't  you?"  shouted  Mr.  Gorbold,  who 
was  a  thick  burly  fellow  of  great  strength,  and  with  this  he 
seated  himself  in  Wentworth's  best  easy-chair.  ' '  I'm  not 
going  to  leave  this  room  until  I'm  paid,"  he  added,  with  a 
coarse  laugh.  ' '  I  won't  be  ch  " The  rest  of  Mr.  Gor 
bold's  remark  was  lost  to  the  world,  for  no  very  soft  hand 
closed  the  channel  of  his  words,  and  the  next  moment  he 
was  grasped  by  the  collar,  and  making  the  best  of  his  unwill 
ing  way  towards  the  door.  The  stalwart  stable-keeper  and 
his  friends  were,  however,  no  cowards,  and  at  once  prepared 
to  attack  our  hero.  And  now  great  deeds  had  been 
achieved,  with  which  all  college  had  rung,  when  the  door 
was  flung  open,  and  Seaborn  entered  the  room,  with 


Fair  Harvard.  95 

Brandreth  and  another  Soph,  who  happened  to  be  in  Sea- 
born's  room. 

"If  there's  any  fighting  going  on  here,  you  will  count 
us  in,"  said  Seaborn,  and  the  young  Herculean  "oar" 
placed  his  hands  in  his  pockets,  while  Brandreth  leaned 
against  the  wall,  with  a  happy  smile  playing  round  his 
mouth. 

The  rebels,  cowed  by  the  arrival  of  these  allies,  muttered 
a  few  threats  and  left  the  room.  The  Sophs  laughed  over 
Wentworth's  account  of  the  affair,  and  after  a  short  conver 
sation,  also  took  their  leave.  Wentworth  then  seated  him 
self,  and  indited  the  following  epistle  to  his  father  : 

' '  DEAR  FATHER  ; 

'  Quanto  quisque  sibi  plura  negaverit 
Ab  dis  plura  t'eret.' 

"  I  am  very  sorry  to  learn  what  you  write  on  account  of 
your  and  mother's  sake.  I  hope,  however,  that  the  crisis 
will  soon  be  over,  and  that  you  will  then  be  freed  from 
your  trouble  and  anxiety.  Do  not  feel  any  uneasiness 
about  my  education.  The  sum  you  mention  is  more  than 
sufficient.  I  should  have  spent  a  year  in  college  to  little 
profit,  if  I  had  not  learnt  to  endure  the  changes  of  circum 
stance  philosophically.  The  older  I  grow  the  more  I  see 
the  real  worthlessness  to  a  scholar  of  more  than  enough 
money  to  support  life.  A  college  at  least  should  be  a 
place  where  learning  alone  is  sought  for,  and  prized,  and 
a  student's  money  should  be  his  ideas.  More  than  this 
tends  to  draw  his  mind  from  his  studies,  to  which,  I  regret 


96  Fair  Harvard. 

to  say,  my  course  this  term  is  a  witness.  Truth,  you  know, 
loves  to  dwell  in  an  empty  stomach,  and  the  Muses  always 
attack  this  barbarous  world  without  bag  or  baggage. 

"Next  year  I  shall  live  after  the  fashion  of  the  scholars  of 
those  good  old  times,  which  you  so  often  praise, 

'  When  illustrious  men, 

Lovers  of  truth,  by  penury  constrained, 
Bucer,  Erasmus,  or  Melaucthou,  read 
Before  the  doors  and  windows  of  their  cells 
By  moonshine,  through  mere  lack  of  taper  light.' 

"  '  My  room, '  I  shall  then  write  you,  '  is  naked  and  studi 
ous;  my  ragged  coat  is  open  to  every  breath  of  truth; 
books  are  my  main  food,  the  fountain  of  Castalia  my 
wine  ;  for  the  rest,  a  cup  of  pure  water  and  an  ear  of  In 
dian  corn  suffice. 


:  Me  pascunt  OU'VSB 


Me  cichorea,  levesque  malvse.' 

* '  With  my  best  love  to  mother  and  Mary,  believe  me, 
' '  Your  affectionate  son, 

* '  WENTWORTH. 
' '  Henry  L,  Sauhbury,  Esq. " 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"  Continue  auditae  voces  vagitus  et  ingens 
Infantumque  animse  flentes  in  limine  priino," 

>HE  examination  has  been  terrible,  terrible  !  All 
men  say  it  has  been  twice  as  hard  this  year,  as 
ever  before.  Did  you  get  through  your  Latin 
Grammar  paper  ?  I  feel  awfully  anxious  about  that.  I  am 
safe  in  Roman  History,  thank  Heaven,  I  only  made  one 
mistake  ;  I  thought  the  Gracchi  were  one  of  the  Gallic 
tribes  conquered  by  Caesar.  How  did  you  do  in  mathema 
tics  ?" 

"Oh,  I  did  everything  on  that  paper.  Mathematics, 
you  know,  is  my  strong  point.  A  man  who  sat  next  me 
did  not  know  the  answer  to  a  single  question.  I  showed 
him  how  to  draw  a  tangent.  A  tutor  glared  savagely  at 
me  afterwards.  I  hope  he  did  not  report  me.  But  the 
Greek  digamma  :  I  feel  all  in  a  perspiration  about  that. 
The  examination  has  been  terrible,  terrible  I" 

Thus,  a  few  minutes  before  three  o'clock,  one  day  in 
July,  clad  in  their  rustic  garments,  Masters  Solomon  Digge, 
and  Solon  Grvnde,  two  candidates  for  admission  to  Har- 


98  Fair  Harvard. 

vard,  held  high  debate,  as  arm  in  arm  they  walked  through 
the  college  yard. 

"Who  are  those  men?"  whispered  Digge,  nudging 
Grynde,  as  they  approached  a  substantial-looking  old  gen 
tlemen,  conversing  earnestly  with  one  of  two  boys,  stand 
ing  beside  him. 

"That  is  Bob  May,  a  man  of  our  class,"  returned 
Grynde  ;  ' '  one  of  the  older  men  is  his  father.  I  don't 
know  the  other. " 

"Are  not  you  Master  Digge,  and  Master  Grynde?" 
asked  Saulsbury,  the  third  of  the  trio,  stepping  forward  as 
the  candidates  approached  him,  and  handing  them  each  a 
printed  paper.  "I  have  been  ordered  by  the  Faculty," 
he  added,  "to  summon  you  to  attend  a  private  examina 
tion,  at  three  o'clock,  in  No.  i  Holworthy.  That  is  the 
room,"  and  with  the  air  of  one  used  to  command,  Went- 
worth  waved  the  frightened  boys  towards  the  building,  and 
turned  to  continue  his  conversation  with  the  old  gentleman 
near  him. 

"I  was  not  aware  that  there  were  two  examinations," 
said  Mr.  May,  pere,  looking  at  his  son  with  paternal 
solicitude. 

' '  It  was  not  so  formerly, "  replied  Wentworth,  ' l  but  it  is 
now  customary  when,  at  the  public  examination,  a  candi 
date  does  not  show  sufficient  proficiency  in  his  studies  to 
allow  the  Faculty  to  admit  him,  but  gives  so  much  promise 
as  to  make  them  reluctant  to  reject  him,  to  grant  him  a 
second  examination  in  private,  where  he  will  be  less 
embarrassed. " 


Fair  Harvard.  99 

"Certainly  a  very  wise  provision,  sir,  a  very  wise  pro 
vision,  "  said  the  old  gentleman,  moving  his  head  solemnly 
up  and  down,  and  taking  from  his  pocket  a  large  handker 
chief  to  hide  his  agitation. 

"The  appearance  of  your  son,"  continued  Wentworth, 
looking  flatteringly  at  the  blushing  face  of  Master  May, 
"makes  me  confident  that  he  will  find  no  difficulty  in 
passing  this  second  examination  satisfactorily." 

"Thank  you,  sir,  thank  you  with  all  my  heart;  you 
reassure  me  !"  and  the  old  gentleman  returned  his  flutter 
ing  handkerchief  to  its  nest,  and  grasped  Wentworth  warm 
ly  by  the  hand  :  then  taking  his  arm,  Mr.  May  bade  his 
son  follow  them,  and  the  three  walked  towards  Hoi- 
worthy. 

"One  cannot,"  remarked  Wentworth,  as  they  drew  near 
the  building,  '  <  one  cannot  over-estimate  the  advantage  to 
your  son  of  becoming  a  member  of  Harvard  College.  Not 
only  will  he  thereby  become  master  of  all  ancient  and 
modern  languages,  sciences,  and  arts ;  not  only  will 
society  of  the  highest  fashion  and  fortune  at  once  open 
their  doors  to  welcome  him  :  but  he  will  secure  for  him 
self  the  sure  means  of  future  preferment  and  honor,  in  any 
profession  he  may  choose  to  follow." 

"It  gives  me  profound  pleasure,  sir,  profound  pleas 
ure,"  rejoined  the  old  gentleman,  pausing  to  survey  the 
architectural  splendor  around  him,"  to  see  our  young  men, 
sir,  our  young  men,  on  whom  the  hopes  of  the  country 
rest,  appreciate  the  advantages  of  the  present  day,  advan 
tages  which  it  was  our  misfortune  to  be  without.  The 


100  Fair  Harvard. 

thought  fills  me  with  pride  and  hope  for  our  country's  fu 
ture,  our  country's  glorious  future,"  and  the  old  gentleman 
again  shook  Wentworth  warmly  by  the  hand,  at  which  our 
hero  cast  his  eyes  modestly  down,  and  continued  his  dis 
course  until  they  reached  the  door. 

"I  regret,"  he  then  said  to  Mr.  May,  "that  the  rules  of 
the   Faculty  forbid   any  friends   of  the   candidates   being 
present  at  their  examination.     They  fear  least  their  friends 
should  naturally  be  tempted  to  give  them  some  assistance, 
if  in  difficulty  over  a  Latin  or  Greek  sentence." 

"Quite  right,  sir,  quite  right!  so  we  should,  so  we 
should  !"  and  the  old  gentleman,  who  had  had  but  a  year's 
schooling  in  his  life,  felt  highly  flattered  by  the  precaution. 
Then  again  shaking  hands  with  our  hero,  Mr.  May  turned 
and  walked  up  and  down  among  the  trees  of  the  college 
yard,  feeling  the  awfulness  of  the  crisis. 

Wentworth  and  Master  May,  however,  passed  into  the 
room,  where  they  found  a  number  of  persons  collected. 
At  its  further  end  were  placed  two  tables,  at  which  several 
boys,  among  them  Masters  Digge  and  Grynde,  were  seated 
hard  at  work  over  their  examination  papers.  Pacing  up  and 
down  before  the  table  were  four  men,  whose  sour  vis 
ages  argued  them  proctors  or  tutors  of  the  college.  The 
corner  of  the  room,  to  the  right,  thronged  with  ven 
erable  scholars,  whose  long  white  beards  added  much 
to  their  imposing  presence.  Two  of  them,  bent  with 
years  and  wisdom,  were  buried  in  huge  tomes,  from 
which  it  required  some  skill  to  distinguish  them  ;  the 


Fair  Harvard.    "-', '/-  >  j  1B1 


rest  were  debating,  with  earnestness,  problems  of  great 
profundity. 

Wentworth  and  Master  May,  as  they  passed  by,  caught 
the  broken  expressions — "the  connection  between  the 
Arrowhead  and  Choctaw  languages  at  first  sight  is  vague  " 
— "yesterday  I  dug  up  a  very  nutritious  Shemitic  root  " — • 
"my  recent  researches  in  Sanscrit  literature"' — "  a  minute 
comparison  of  all  written  languages  will  prove" — "  in  my 
late  edition  of  Confucius'' — "in  committing  to  memory 
the  body  of  Greek  and  Latin  poetry,  care  must  be  taken" 
— and  other  indices  of  deep  discourse. 

Master  May  would  have  lingered,  but  Wentworth  hurried 
him  to  his  seat,  at  the  further  table,  and  bending  over  him 
whispered  in  his  ear,  "My  young  friend,  if  you  have  any 
dates  or  mathematical  formulas  written  down  on  your  nails 
or  shirt  cuffs,  I  recommend  you  to  use  them  with  care,  as 
the  officers  here  are  very  sharp-sighted. " 

' '  I  assure  you,  sir,  I  should  consider  such  conduct 
beneath  me,"  returned  Master  May,  blushing  deeply. 

"If  you  do  not  use  them  with  care,"  urged  Wentworth, 
' '  you  will  certainly  be  found  out. " 

"I  mean,  sir,"  replied  the  boy,  blushing  more  deeply, 
"that  I  should  think  it  wicked  to  use  them  at  all." 

' '  Oh  !  to  be  sure, "  answered  Wentworth,  kindly  laying 
his  hand  on  the  boy's  head.  "I  misunderstood  you. 
Your  words  and  feeling  certainly  do  you  credit.  Though 
such  arts  are  often  practised  here,  I  think  myself  that  they 
are  very  wrong  :"  and  with  this  Wentworth  placed  his  ex 
amination  papers  before  the  boy,  and  left  him  to  his  work. 


Fair  Harvard. 

Master  May  took  up  his  first  paper,  entitled  -Ancient 
and  Modern  History/'  and  with  growing  earnestness, 
read  among  others  the  following  questions. 

"Trace  the  connection  between  the  Eleusinian  Myste 
ries,  the  Destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  Holy  Alli 
ance.  " 

"  What  inferences  do  you  draw  as  to  the  cultivation  and 
use  of  tobacco  among  the  Greeks,  from  the  prayer  of  Ajax 
for  a  light?  What  information  is  derived  from  ancient 
coins  upon  this  subject  ?" 

"Show  how  the  expression  A  No.  i,  sprang  from  the 
death  of  Ajax." 

"What,  if  any,  was  the  difference  between  the  ear  of 
Dionysius  and  the  ear  of  Dionysus  ?" 

"What,  if  any,  is  the  difference  between  Jacobins  and 
Jacobites  ?" 

"  What  relation  was  Hecuba  to  Hamlet?" 
"Describe  the  religious  ceremonies  of  the   Mohawks, 
Cyprians,  Pantagruelists,  Bohemians,  Alsatians,  and  Brob- 
dignagians." 

"Was  the  conduct  of  Rhea,  in  giving  Saturn  a  stone 
when  he  asked  for  his  child,  Christian?  What  is  the  allu 
sion  to  this  in  holy  writ  ?" 

"Why  was  Hannibal  called  Barker?  Prove  from  this 
the  custom  of  the  Romans  to  libel  their  enemies.  Show 
the  connection  between  the  words  Hannibal  and  cannibal. 
What  deductions  do  you  draw  from  this  similarity,  as  to 
the  carnivorous  habits  of  the  Carthaginians?  What  light  is 


Fair  Harvard.  103 

thrown  upon  your  inquiry  by  the  sacred  page — '  your 
fathers  did  eat  man-na  in  the  wilderness, '  etc.  ?" 

"  Show  by  historical  instances,  the  advantages  of  em 
ploying  negro  troops  in  night  attacks." 

' '  Which  of  the  three  Horatii  was  the  famous  poet  ? 
Give  the  peculiar  turn  of  the  foot  by  which  he  tript  up  the 
third  of  the  Curiatii.  How  did  this  give  the  name  to  the 
Horatian  metre  ?" 

"  Show  how  the  murder  of  the  sons  of  yEgyptus 
has  given  rise  to  the  modern  movements  for  women's 
rights. " 

Master  May  with  a  sigh  laid  down  his  first  paper,  and 
taking  up  a  second,  entitled  Latin  and  Greek  Grammar, 
began  to  read. 

"Trace  the  derivation  of  the  name  Hellenes,  from 
Helen  of  Troy.  Show  the  relation  of  both  these  words  to 
the  Latin  word  heluo,  and  the  English  word  hellian. 
From  the  identity  of  the  roots  of  the  two  words,  prove  the 
existence  of  an  Indo-Germanic  family." 

"Translate  and  scan  the  following  lines — 

Ligo  gallina  Tartarus  cur 

v        Fcenuru 
Corvus  glandarius  altus  apis  illc." 

"Show  the  derivation  of  the  expression  lynx-eyed,  from 
Lynceus. " 

At  this  point  Master  May's  attention  was  attracted  to 
wards  his  classmate  Grynde,  who,  hurrying  past  him, 
stopped  one  of  the  tutors  and  exclaimed — 

"Is  there  not  some  mistake  here?     Is  it  possible  that 


104  Fair   Harvard. 

my  mathematical  paper  was  unsatisfactory  ?  Mathematics, 
you  know,  is  my  strong  point.  My  old  teacher,  Whaleham, 
calls  me  the  mathematical  phenomenon.  I  answered  all 
the  questions  in  ten  minutes,  and  I  feel  sure  that  the  an 
swers  were  correct." 

"Your  answers  were  correct,  sir,"  replied  the  tutor, 
eying  the  boy  with  pitiless  scorn,  "suspiciously  correct. 
Do  you  remember  what  was  said  before  the  examination 
about  copying  from  your  neighbor's  paper?  Go  to  your 
seat  at  once,  sir  ! — to  your  seat !" 

Master  Grynde  recalled  his  more  than  Samaritan  kind 
ness  to  the  boy  who  sat  next  him,  in  the  matter  of  the 
tangent,  and  now,  to  be  himself  accused  of  copying,  and 
from  such  a  paper,  it  was  too  much  !  In  silence  he  returned 
to  his  seat,  and  twining  the  fingers  of  one  hand  deep  into 
the  folds  of  his  hair,  with  the  other  took  up  his  paper,  and 
with  growing  earnestness  read,  among  others,  the  follow 
ing  questions. 

' '  Explain  by  mathematical  formulae  the  origin  of  the 
Gulf  Stream.  State  what  you  think  of  the  feasibility  of 
deflecting  it  from  England  in  case  of  war,  and  of  Leaving 
that  country  out  in  the  cold/'' 

"Give  the  formula  by  which  God  prevented  the  world 
from  moving  in  a  spiral  curve.  Had  such  been  its 
course,  what  would  have  been  the  probable  effect  on 
modern  poetry  ?" 

"Work  out  the  problem  called  a  '  pig's  tail  in  a  firkin  of 
butter. '  Compare  this  with  <a  cow's  foot  in  a  cup  of  milk.' 
Illustrate  your  answer  by  means  of  two  sticks." 


Fair  Harvard.  105 

•'When  is  it  excusable  in  an  eccentric  point  to  cut  an 
obtuse  angle  ?" 

"A  man  wishing  to  buy  a  horse,  concludes  to  draw  the 
money  from  his  creditors.  He,  however,  looks  the  horse 
in  the  mouth  and  finds  that  it  lacks  two  front  teeth.  How 
many  creditors  had  he,  and  what  was  the  amount  of  his 
debt  to  each  ?" 

"How  does  the  absence  of  angles  in  nature  afford  the 
strongest  arguments  for  skepticism  ?" 

"What,  if  any,  is  the  difference  between  a  monad  and 
a  nomad  ?" 

"Calculate  the  number  of  throws  from  a  dice-box  con 
taining  all  the  words  in  Shakespeare  before  they  would 
arrange  themselves  as  at  present  in  his  works.  State 
the  period  of  life  at  which  it  would  be  well  to  begin  in 
order  to  prove  this  experimentally. " 

"Show  how,  by  utilizing  the  minus  quantity,  the 
plough  can  be  made  to  draw  the  oxen,  the  ship  to  steer 
the  rudder,  the  mill-wheel  to  move  the  water,  and  the  corn 
to  grind  the  mill." 

* '  Write  out  the  formula  by  which  the  world  was  pro 
duced  from  nothing.  Illustrate  this  by  the  resemblance  of 
the  figure  naught  to  an  egg,  and  the  maxim  t  omnia  ab 
wo?" 

When  Master  Grynde  had  finished  reading  this  paper, 
he  groaned  in  spirit. 

"Surely,"  he  exclaimed,  madly  seizing  a  pencil,  "the 
little  finger  of  this  examination  is  thicker  than  the  loins  of 
the  former.  What  will  old  Whaleham  say  if  I  am  condi- 


106  Fair  Harvard. 

tioned  in  mathematics?"  and  although  almost  a  college 
boy,  Master  Grynde  seemed  to  feel  the  familiar  whack  of 
Whaleham's  ruler. 

During  the  next  half  hour,  there  was  no  further  interrup 
tion  to  the  examination.  The  boys  with  lengthening 
countenances  bent  over  their  tasks  :  the  sour  tutors  paced 
to  and  fro  before  them  :  the  learned  professors  devoured 
their  books,  or  engaged  each  other  in  earnest  debate.  At 
short  intervals  each  of  the  college  officers  passed  through  a 
side  door  to  refresh  his  mind  by  a  consultation  with  some 
work  of  reference. 

After  a  short  half  hour,  Wentworth  was  attracted  by 
various  noises,  and  finally,  by  the  gently  whispered  word 
"  Mister,  "towards  Master  Digge,  near  whom  he  was  seated. 
Glancing  up,  he  saw  the  boy  looking  imploringly  at  him, 
and  asked  him  what  he  wanted. 

' '  Will  not  the  Faculty,  sir, "  begged  the  boy  humbly, 
"  allow  me  the  use  of  a  dictionary  for  a  few  minutes? 
There  are  two  or  three  words  here,  which  I  have  never  met 
in  all  my  reading.  'Long  nine/ I  suppose  is  longum 
novetn,  and  'brandy  smash/  concursus  vinarius,  but  for 
'bosh/  and  'gaffer/ I  can't  think  of  any  corresponding 
words  in  Latin." 

Wentworth  kindly  looked  over  Master  Digge's  paper, 
which  contained  the  following  paragraph  to  be  rendered 
into  classical  Latin. 

' '  The  great  god  Bosh,  having  wined  with  gaffer  Bun- 
corn,  and  dined  on  the  American  peacock,  smoked  a  long 


Fair  Harvard.  107 

nine,  drank  a  brandy  smash,  and  said   '  a  small  piece  of 
soap  makes  a  great  many  bubbles. ' " 

"It  is  not  usual,"  said  Wentworth,  after  reading  the  sen 
tence,  ' '  but  since  you  have  translated  the  rest  of  the  exer 
cise  so  well,  and  the  words  are  rare  in  Latin,  I  will 
endeavor  to  obtain  the  favor  from  Professor  Horace."  Our 
hero  thereupon  walked  to  a  grave  scholar,  buried  in  his 
book,  and  urged  his  request.  The  professor  at  first  shook 
his  head  solemnly,  and  taking  up  a  copy  of  the  college 
laws,  pointed  out  one  of  them  to  Wentworth.  Our  hero, 
however,  persevered  with  word  and  gesture ;  the  professor's 
head  moved  slower  and  slower,  and  at  length  began  to  nod 
up  and  down.  At  this  Wentworth  hurried  with  his  prize  to 
Master  Digge,  the  anxious  witness  of  his  efforts. 

"Thank  you,  sir,  thank  you,"  whispered  the  boy,  "I 
shall  never  forget  your  kindness. " 

' '  They  are  very  strict  here, "  remarked  Wentworth,  as  he 
passed  the  book  to  the  boy.  ' '  I  had  myself  to  pass  ten 
private  examinations,  before  I  was  admitted.  But  you 
must  make  haste  :  you  have  only  a  few  minutes  more  to 
write." 

Wentworth  had  scarcely  returned  to  his  seat,  when 
Professor  Horace  rapped  on  a  table,  and  informed  the 
candidates  that  they  had  but  five  minutes  more  to  com 
plete  their  work. 

Then  indeed  more  sharply  heads  were  scratched,  more 
swiftly  pencils  flew  over  the  paper,  and  the  whole  building 
rocked  to  and  fro  with  the  movement  of  the  students' 
brains. 


108  Fair  Harvard. 

Again  the  fatal  mallet  was  heard.  "The  time  is  up," 
proclaimed  the  professor.  ' '  Mr.  Brown,  will  you  and  your 
Freshman  collect  the  answers  ?" 

"Cannot  you  allow  me  five  minutes  more?"  begged 
Master  Grynde,  as  the  tutor  demanded  his  papers.  "I 
am  just  finishing  my  last  question — four  minutes,  I  im 
plore  you — one  minute — oh  Whaleham  ! — one  word — my 
mother !  oh !" 

' '  It  is  impossible!  Justice  requires  the  Faculty  to  be  im 
partial,"  replied  the  inexorable  tutor,  as  he  gathered  up 
the  papers. 

These  all  collected,  Professor  Horace  told  the  boys  that 
they  might  now  go,  and  bade  them,  as  before  directed,  to 
call  at  the  President's  room  at  five  o'clock  to  learn  whether 
they  had  been  successful. 

At  this  announcement,  the  anxious  candidates  hurried 
from  the  door,  Master  Prym  to  join  his  father,  the  rest  to 
hover  about  the  Green,  awaiting  from  the  President  their 
summons  to  honor  or  disgrace. 

Scarcely  had  the  boys  left  the  room,  when  a  strange 
metamorphosis  took  ptace.  Peals  of  laughter  shook  the 
walls  :  dictionaries,  wigs,  spectacles,  and  beards  flew  about 
the  room  like  things  of  life,  as  grim  professors  and  frown 
ing  tutors  were  transformed  into  jolly  students. 

"  This  has  been  a  most  glorious  sell !"  cried  Van,  who 
was  no  other  than  Professor  Horace. 

"Look  at  all  these  answers!"  exclaimed  Rakeman, 
who  but  a  moment  ago  was  Brown,  the  most  savage  of  tu 
tors. 


Fair  Harvard.  109 

At  this  every  one  eagerly  claimed  his  share,  and  Rake- 
man  divided  among  his  friends  the  choice  spoils,  of  which 
many  are  preserved  as  college  transmittenda  to  this  day. 

"Come,  fellows,  we  may  be  caught.  That  Pym,  I 
think,  was  a  little  suspicious,"  suggested  Ayres,  leading 
his  friends  into  one  of  the  back  rooms.  There  all  re 
freshed  themselves  with  one  more  reference  to  an  exhilara 
ting  library ;  they  then  climbed  from  the  window,  and 
spread  the  glory  of  their  class  far  and  wide  throughout  the 
college. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

"  Sit  mihi  mensa  tripes  et 
Concha  salis  puri  et  toga  quae  defendere  frigus 
Quamvis  crassa  queat." 

|NE  Friday  afternoon,  four  weeks  trom  the  be 
ginning  of  the  first  Sophomore  term,  a  student 
might  have  been  seen  walking  with  an  elastic 
step  up  North  Avenue. 

His  coat,  which  was  threadbare,  and  of  a  color  to  blind 
the  analytic  eye  of  science,  was  closely  buttoned  around  his 
neck,  a  veteran  hat,  with  many  scars  in  front  and  not  a 
few  behind,  covered  his  head,  while  a  pair  of  boots  which 
might  well  boast  their  ancient  birth,  adorned  his  feet. 

The  right  hand  of  the  lad  carried  a  bag,  in  which  lay 
half  a  dozen  eggs,  and  from  his  left  hung  a  basket  contain 
ing  a  blue-fish,  a  pound  of  butter,  and  a  dozen  pears. 
Wentworth,  for  the  boy  was  no  other  than  our  hero, 
nodded  pleasantly  to  a  few  of  his  classmates  whom  he  met, 
and  was  turning  the  corner  of  the  college-yard,  when  he 
was  aware  of  three  carriages,  filled  with  ladies  and  gentle 
men,  driving  past  him.  Suddenly  one  of  the  ladies  leaned 
forward  and  made  Wentworth  a  bow.  "  Miss  Campbell  I" 


Fair  Harvard.  Ill 

he  exclaimed  half  audibly,  and  raised  his  hand  to  his  hat, 
at  which  motion  the  bag  followed  the  great  law  of  gravita 
tion,  and  by  an  ill-fated  marriage,  six  eggs  became  one. 
The  carriage  drove  on,  and  for  a  moment  our  hero  stood 
watching  it  disappear.  The  smile  he  had  worn  gave  place 
to  Plutonian  gloom.  "To  be  seen  by  Miss  Campbell  in 
this  plight  !"  he  muttered,  as  he  slowly  walked  along  Kirk- 
land  Street,  revolving  many  memories.  "  Confound  it,  I 
would  rather  have  been  shot !  She'll  know,  now,  why  I 
didn't  accept  her  invitation  to  her  party  to-night. " 

Arrived  at  the  lane  on  which  Divinity  Hall  fronts, 
Wentworth  turned  down  it,  and  soon  reached  his  room, 
which  was  on  the  lower  floor  of  that  gloomy  building. 

This  bore  but  little  resemblance  in  size  or  circumstance  to 
his  former  apartment.  It  was  about  sixteen  feet  square, 
and  had  on  one  side. an  alcove  and  a  small  closet. 

The  alcove  was  filled  with  an  iron  bedstead,  projecting 
from  beneath  which  the  mouth  of  a  hat-bath  preached  the 
virtue  which  is  next  to  godliness.  A  sofa  bedstead  stood 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  room,  and  in  the  centre  was  a 
pine  table,  around  wh'ich  were  a  few  wooden  chairs.  The 
floor  was  bare  and  unpainted.  Near  the  fire-place,  sur 
mounted  by  a  tin  kettle,  was  a  gas  stove,  next  which  stood 
a  cupboard,  which  boasted  six  plates,  the  same  number  of 
cups  and  saucers,  two  tin  cans  marked  tea  and  coffee,  a 
salt  cellar,  a  French  coffee-pot,  a  pewter  cobler- shaker,  and 
an  immense  cavernous  crock,  standing  like  an  after-dinner 
alderman  among  starving  apprentices.  A  few  of  Went- 
worth's  books,  which  had  not  been  stolen  from  him  bv  his 


112  Fair  Harvard. 

creditors,  rested  in  an  old  book-rack,  and  hanging  opposite 
the  fire-place  was  his  engraving  of  the  Madonna,  which, 
like  an  eye,  lit  up  the  entire  room.  Underneath  this 
Wentworth  had  burnt  with  a  poker  the  words, 

....  " reliquias  Danaum  atque  inmitis  Achilli." 

The  wall  opposite  also  discovered  the  aphorism, 

....   "  Multa  petentibus 
Desunt  multa  :    bene  est  cui  Deus  obtulit 
Parca,  quod  satis  est,  manu.  " 

While  before  the  door,  the  visitor,  on  entering,  caught 
sight  of  the  stirring  couplet, 

"  Aude,  hospes,  contemnere  opes,  et  te  quoque  dignum 
Finge  deo  ;  rebusque  veni  nonasper  egenis." 

Other  shadowy  maxims  were  placed  at  hand  around  the 
room,  as  sops  for  the  intellect  to  throw  to  the  hungry 
stomach. 

The  old.  building  of  which  our  hero's  room  formed  a 
part,  may  itself  well  repay  a  moment's  glance  from  the  pro 
fane  or  pious  reader.  The  Hall  was  built  at  a  time  when 
funereal  gloom  was  deemed  essential  for  the  perfect  de 
velopment  of  the  Christian  character.  Its  situation,  how 
ever,  is  in  one  of  the  pleasantest  parts  of  Cambridge. 

Before  it  then  stretched  a  green,  unbroken  except  by  a 
snake-pen,  the  only  omen  by  which  the  forecasting  mind 
could  have  predicted  the  birth  of  the  immortal  Museum. 
Now  a  foot  or  leg  of  this  child  of  the  great  foreigner's  brain 
has  projected  itself  into  sight,  and  the  fossils  there  heaped 
together  reflect  comparative  liveliness  upon  the  Divinity 
School  opposite.  North  of  the  Hall  creeps  a  lazy  brook 


Fair  Harvard.  113 


this  side  a  grove,  in  which  lie  hid  the  houses  of  fair-daugh- 
tered  professors.  Behind,  stands  the  janitor's  house,  and 
a  pump  which  justly  grumbles  from  overwork,  while  be 
yond  these  rise  Norton's  Woods,  the  Unitarian  Dodona. 

Within  this  old  rookery  small  rooms  open  into  dreary  en 
tries.  There  pace  the  mild-eyed  melancholy  Divinity  stu 
dents,  who  can  be  heard  by  the  curious  at  all  hours  of  the 
day  and  night  rehearsing  their  prayers,  and  exhorting  each 
other  with  fervor. 

This  spot  Wentwoith  and  Lewis  had,  after  long  delibera 
tion,  chosen  as  their  most  secure  retreat  from  the  world. 
Here  they  lived,  cooking  their  own  meals,  and  devoting 
themselves  to  study,  in  monastic  seclusion.  \Ventworth's 
allowance,  as  soon  as  it  arrived,  was  divided  into  three 
equal  parts,  one  to  be  used  for  the  purchase  of  luxuries, 
one  of  comforts,  and  one  of  necessaries.  Every  morning 
the  baker  left  a  dozen  rolls,  and  the  milkman  a  quart  of 
milk  at  their  door,  and  on  alternate  days  each  boy  ordered 
and  prepared  dinner  for  himself  and  his  chum.  The  rest 
of,their  time,  except  an  hour  for  exercise,  was  given  to  study 
and  a  generous  rivalry  for  the  first  place  in  the  class. 

Besides  their  regular  lessons  they  had  marked  out  for 
themselves  a  course  of  English  literature,  and  had  enlarged 
their  old  custom  of  learning  Latin  verses  by  the  addition  of 
fifty  lines  a  day  from  the  best  English  prose  and  poetry. 
Most  of  their  class,  and  the  entire  outer  world,  that  they 
might  pursue  their  studies  without  interruption,  were  ban 
ished  from  their  room.  The  exceptions  to  this  general 
proscription  were  the  members  of  their  old  club-table,  Van 


114  Fair  Harvard. 

Courtland,  and  Hayward,  a  friend  of  Hamilton,  and  a 
' '  thinker, "  who  were  given  the  countersign  of  four  knocks. 
These  few  friends,  however,  kept  them  well  informed  of 
the  great  events  of  college  life.  Van  unfolded  to  them  the 
splendor  of  the  world  of  fashion ;  Ay-res  rehearsed  to 
them  what  the  warbling  world  poured  forth  ;  Bowyer  gave 
them  the  news  of  the  progress  of  muscular  Christianity, 
that  Seaborn's  arm  had  gained  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  or 
that  Brandreth  had  lost  an  eighth  around  the  chest ;  while 
Hayward  instructed  them  in  the  new  truths  discovered  by 
himself,  Gowan,  and  other  college  thinkers. 

The  social  position  of  neither  of  the  boys  was  injured, 
and  their  characters  were  much  improved  by  their  new 
mode  of  life.  Poverty,  though  it  crushes  the  weak,  strength 
ens  the  strong.  If  a  man  grapple  bravely  with  the  subtle 
enemy,  and  bear  himself  with  the  same  dignity  and  pride 
in  adversity  which  he  has  shown  in  prosperity,  he  loses  in 
but  a  slight  degree  the  respect  of  the  world,  and  gains  a 
self-respect  independent  of  circumstance.  Wentworth  and 
Lewis  soon  found  that  they  had  more  time  to  themselves, 
were  in  better  health,  worked  harder,  and  on  the  whole 
enjoyed  themselves  more,  than  ever  before.  They  loved, 
indeed,  to  compare  themselves  to  Jerome  in  his  cave  or 
Socrates  with  his  annual  cloak,  and  boasted  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  secret  passes  of  Bohemia,  its  caves,  and 
fastnesses,  and  the  "pure  serene"  of  its  rocky  summits. 
They  were,  however,  only  wandering  among  the  pleasant 
valleys  and  sloping  hills  on  the  confines  of  that  Alpine 
region.  Bohemia  proper  !  far  beyond  them  shine  its  blue 


Fair  Harvard.  115 

mountain  tops,  clad  with  the  hue  of  enchantment  which 
distance  lends — far  beyond  them  yawn  its  hungry  ravines, 
and  precipitous  steeps  inaccessible  to  less  than  heroes. 

Wentworth  on  entering  his  room  found  Lewis  seated  at 
the  table,  reading  a  volume  of  Mr.  Grote's  interesting 
history. 

" Lewis,"  asks  our  hero  with  a  hollow  voice,  "  Lewis, 
how  much  money  is  there  in  the  bag  ?"  Hamilton,  as  the 
more  economical  of  the  two,  had  charge  of  the  finances  of 
the  partnership. 

' '  Twelve  dollars,  old  boy ;  you  remember  we  gave  ten 
to  that  poor  devil  up  stairs." 

"  How  long  will  it  be  before  we  have  any  more  ?" 

' '  One  week  ;  your  allowance  came  just  a  week  ago. " 

' '  Lewis, "  continues  our  hero,  ' '  I  want  you  to  let  me 
have  ten  dollars  and  never  to  ask  me  what  I  did  with  it." 

"What  shall  we  do  next  week?"  asks  Hamilton  in  a 
tone  of  anxiety. 

"We  will  'wrestle,'"  replies  our  hero. 

Lewis,  without  further  words,  handed  his  pocket-book  to 
Wentworth,  who  took  from  it  two  five  dollar  bills  and  re 
turned  it. 

"You  have  a  recitation  at  five,  have  you  not,  Went 
worth  ?" 

"  Yes,  but  I  must  go  into  town — au  revoir"  and  Sauls- 
bury  ran  from  his  room  to  the  horse-cars,  and  was  soon  in 
breezy  Boston.  There  he  hurried  to  a  florist's,  ordered  a 
basket  of  tea-roses  to  be  sent  to  Miss  Campbell's  that  even- 


116  Fair  Harvard. 

ing,  and  returned  to  Cambridge,  relieved  in  mind  and 
pocket. 

Wentworth  reached  his  room  a  few  minutes  after  six, 
and  found  that  his  chum  had  already  set  the  table,  and  was 
engaged  in  frying  the  blue-fish,  the  savory  odor  of  which 
saluted  his  nostrils  as  he  entered  the  door. 

"You  know,  Wentworth,"  said  Lewis,  as  they  sat  down 
to  dinner,  ' '  that  you  invited  Van  Courtland  to  breakfast 
next  Sunday,  and  we  have  only  two  dollars  in  the  bag." 

' '  Did  you  never,  Lewis, "  returned  the  former,  ' '  read 
the  story  of  Elijah  and  his  ravens  ?  I  feel  in  my  bones  that 
there  is  food  in  the  air,  which  will  be  given  us  in  due  sea 
son.  Why  do  you  look  so  solemn?  You  resemble  a 
Greek,  who,  after  a  life  of  labor,  has  amassed  not  a 
single  obol,  and  rejected  of  Charon  is  forced  to  flit  about 
the  banks  of  the  nine-fold  Styx. 

"I  was  thinking,  Wentworth,  that  that  breed  of  ravens 
had  died  out.  The  '  twa  corbies '  are  the  ravens  one  sees 
now-a-days." 

"They  shan't  theek  their  nest  with  a  lock  from  your 
caput,  old  boy,"  said  Wentworth,  looking  kindly  at  his 
friend's  bright  face.  ' '  I  could  myself,  in  this  dress,  turn  an 
honest  penny  as  a  scarecrow.  How  far  have  you  read  in 
Grote  ?"  he  added,  as  they  cleared  away  the  table  to  begin 
their  evening's  work. 

"  I  am  just  finishing  the  eighth  volume.  What  a  glori 
ous  history  it  is,  is  it  not  ?  How  well  it  refutes  the  attacks 
of  Mitford  and  other  conservative  writers  on  the  Athenian 
democracy.  Athens  did  more  for  humanity  in  one  century, 


Fair  Harvard.  117 

than  the  rest  of  the  world  has  done  since  its  creation. 
The  Athenian  mind  seems  to  flash  across  the  past,  "as  the 
lightning  "  that  ' '  cometh  out  of  the  east,  and  shineth  even 
unto  the  west. " 

"What  a  noble  exhibition  of  power  it  is,  Lewis,"  said 
his  chum,  ' '  to  see  a  man  like  Grote  or  Gibbon  become 
the  Autocrat  of  the  centuries  of  which  they  write  by  a  title 
no  one  can  contest.  I  am  still  in  my  third  volume  of 
Macaulay.  His  history,  I  think,  is  much  inferior  to  his 
essays.  He  seems  in  that  to  have  no  eye  for  perspective, 
and  to  be  innocent  of  so  much  as  a  suspicion  of  a  first 
principle.  I  learnt  something  out  of  Sir  Thomas  Browne 
to-day,  which  I  want  you  to  hear  me  recite — 'I  cannot 
contemn  a  man  for  ignorance,  but  behold  him  with  as 
much  pity  as  I  do  Lazarus.  It  is  no  greater  charity  to 
clothe  his  body  than  apparel  the  nakedness  of  his  soul,' 
etc." 

"I  have  got  something  from  Fuller — on  memory,"  said 
Lewis  after  hearing  his  chum.  * '  '  Overburden  not  thy 
memory,  to  make  so  faithful  a  servant  a  slave/  etc." 

After  finishing  their  prose,  the  boys  recited  their  verse, 
Wentworth  having  learnt  a  piece  from  Otway. 

"  I'm  thinking,  Pierre,  how  that  damn'd  starving  quality 
Call'd  honesty,  got  footing  in  the  world,"  etc. 

and  Lewis  reciting  Chaucer's  Clerk, 

"  A  Clerk  ther  was  of  Oxenforde  also, 
That  unto  logike  hadde  long  ygo,"  etc. 

' '  It  almost  makes  a  man  a  critic,  to  learn  pieces  from 
the  finest  authors/'  said  Lewis  on  finishing.  "The  mind 


118  Fair  Harvard'. 

so  abhors-  to  commit  anything  to  memory,  which  is  not 
written  with  art." 

"The  only  way  in  which  you  can  appreciate  the  style  of 
an  author,  is  to  learn  passages  from  him  by  heart ;  style  is 
such  a  subtle  essence," — added  Wentworth,  and  the  two 
boys  then  settled  down  to  their  regular  studies,  one  read 
ing  Terence,  and  the  other  Demosthenes,  until  eleven, 
when  they  ^nt  to  bed. 

The  next  Sunday  morning,  Lewis,  on  looking  into  the 
cupboard,  saw  there,  to  his  great  surprise,  the  elements  for 
breakfast. 

"Why  Wentworth  !"  he  exclaimed,  "where  did  you  get 
all  these  things  ?"  and  a  suspicion  seizing  him,  he  ran  to 
the  closet.  "You  wretch,  what  have  you  done  with  your 
best,  I  may  almost  say  your  only  suit  of  clothes?" 

* '  The  articles  of  dress  to  which  you  allude,  Lewis, " 
replied  Wentworth,  with  proper  gravity,  "are  at  present  in 
the  possession  of  a  gentleman  of  the  Jewish  persua 
sion,  who  is  engaged  in  an  extensive  woolen  business. 
They  are,  to  speak  properly,  pledged,  pawned,  hypothe 
cated,  soaked,  or  waiting  to  be  lifted. " 

"  '  Lifted  !'  Wentworth,  what  do  you  mean  ?" 

' '  Since  your  question,  Lewis,  proves  you  to  know  noth 
ing  of  political  economy,  I  will  begin  at  the  beginning. 
When  a  Bohemian  wishes  to  seize  a  favorable  opportunity 
for  investment  in  a  dinner,  a  ride,  a  wife,  or  a  novel,  and 
lacks  the  ready  money,  the  banker  whom  he  patronizes 
not  infrequently  allows  him  to  give  certain  securities  of 
value,  before  making  the  desired  loan.  The  banker  has 


Fair  Harvard.  119 

of  course  perfect  confidence  in  the  Bohemian,  but  the 
Bohemian  does  not  wish  the  banker's  other  patrons  to  be 
offended  by  an  exception  in  his  own  case.  A  coat,  a 
dozen  shirts,  a  handkerchief,  or  a  paper  collar,  thus  fre 
quently  find  themselves  in  the  possession  of  the  banker,  as 
a  greater  or  less  loan  is  forced  upon  the  Bohemian.  When 
the  latter's  ships  have  arrived,  or  the  rents  from  his  houses 
are  due,  and  he  is  eager  to  repay  the  loan,  the  process  by 
which  the  above  securities  are  returned  by  the  banker  to 
the  Bohemian,  is  technically  termed  'lifting/ the  coat,  or 
collar,  or  what-not.  Don't  look  so  grave,  old  boy. 
Nothing  is  lost  in  this  world  ;  matter  merely  undergoes 
a  change.  That  coat  warmed  me  once  from  the  outside  ; 
now  transformed  by  the  wand  of  commerce,  it  will  warm 
us  both  more  pleasantly  from  within,  fJEcce  signum,'"  and 
Wentworth  takes  up  two  tender  chickens  by  the  legs,  and 
gazes  lovingly  at  them.  ' '  We  are  no  Chattertons,  Lewis. 
We  die  hard." 

' '  What  would  your  mother  say,  Wentworth, "  asked 
Lewis  somewhat  shocked,  ' '  if  she  saw  you  with  a  hole  in 
your  elbow,  '  soaking '  your  last  coat  ?" 

' '  '  Oh,  it  would  kill  my  poor  mother,  Lewis. '  But  we 
must  give  Van  a  good  breakfast.  Besides,  clothes  are 
really  the  badge  of  our  fall.  It  is  a  sin  to  spend  money 
on  anything  but  innocent  pleasures,  food,  wine,  or  to 
bacco.  Van  is  a  devilish  good  fellow,  too.  The  other 
day  he  offered  to  let  me  have  five  hundred  dollars  for  as 
long  a  time  as  I  wished  ;  but  I  told  him  I  was  not  going 


120  Fair  Harvard. 

to  get  any  more  in  debt.  There  arn't  many  men  who 
would  do  that  sort  of  thing." 

* ' He  must  be  a  good  fellow, "  said  Hamilton,  "but  I 
could  never  get  on  with  him.  He  is  so  fast,  and  talks  in 
such  a  skeptical  way  about  everything." 

"He  likes  you  very  well,  Lewis,"  insinuated  his  chum, 
' '  and  has  often  praised  you  to  men  who  spoke  of  you  as 
a  dig." 

"Come  in,"  shouted  our  hero  an  hour  later,  as  he 
heard  four  knocks  at  the  door.  "Welcome!"  he  cried  to 
Van,  who  entered  the  room,  ' '  welcome,  thou  descendant 
of  royal  ancestors,  to  our  more  than  Sabine  fare. 

'Victum  infelicein,  baccas  lapidosaque  corna 
Dant  rami,  et  vulsis  pascunt  radicibus  tierbae.' 

It  will  do  you  good,  though,  old  boy,  to  fast  for  once  in 
your  life.  The  first  time  one  goes  without  a  breakfast 
from  necessity,  he  feels  the  genial  glow  of  a  new  sensation. 
Thenceforth  he  surveys  the  world,  from  a  new  point  of 
view,  and  with  a  more  kindly  sympathy.  The  first  love, 
the  first  act  of  consciousness,  the  first  doubt,  the  first  dress, 
however  rude,  each  of  these  opens  to  us  a  new  facet  of  the 
world.  But  more  than  ail  these,  not  to  be  able  to  procure 
a  breakfast  places  you  at  the  very  centre  of  humanity,  and 
enables  you  to  see  from  within,  all  sides  of  many  sided 
life." 

"Take  him  off!  take  him  off!"  Van  calls  to  Hamilton, 
"he's  mad,  or  has  written  a  paper  for  the  Institute,  or 
both.  Wentworth,  you  lazy  dog,"  he  adds,  "you  cut 
prayers  to-day." 


Fair  Harvard.  121 

"That's  true,  Van,  but  how  did  you  learn  it?" 
"In  a  way  you  could  never  guess.     I   was  there  my 
self." 

"Breakfast  is  served,"  announces  Lewis,  placing  two 
straws  in  Van's  tumbler. 

' '  By  Jove,  fellows !  that's  the  best  sherry  cobbler  I  ever 
drank  !"  exclaims  Van,  drawing  the  nectar  through  the 
pipes.  "Hamilton,  you  ought  to  take  a  little  wine  for 
your  stomach's  sake." 

' '  Lewis  is  an  odd  fish.  He  has  sworn  off  drink 
ing  while  he  is  in  college,"  Wentworth  answers  for  his 
chum. 

' '  That  smacks  of  atheism, "  returns  Van  ;  "St.  Paul  is 
explicit  on  that  point. " 

"You  know  more  and  act  less  Scripture,  I  suppose, 
Van,  than  any  man  in  college,"  remarked  Wentworth, 
pouring  out  for  him  a  cup  of  coffee. 

Van  made  no  answer,  but,  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye, 
surveyed  the  table,  which  had  been  arranged  with  skill. 
In  the  centre,  filled  with  divine  chicken  pie,  towered  the 
earthen  crock,  the  stomach's  arsenal,  in  which  one  could 
hear  Plenty  winding  her  merry  horn.  A  bottle  of  Crosse 
and  Blackwell's  pickles  stood  on  Wentworth's  left, 
second  to  the  crock  alone  in  dignity,  but  second  at  a  vast 
distance,  as  Ajax  the  Less  paled  before  Ajax  Telamon. 
Flanking  the  pickles  were  a  jar  of  orange-marmalade,  a  pot 
of  Yarmouth  bloaters,  and  a  dish  of  devilled  kidneys.  A 
coffee-pot,  with  a  bottle  of  sherry,  and  two  of  Bordeaux, 
stood  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  table ;  while  on  what  had 


122  Fair  Harvard. 

been  formerly  a  hat-box,  but  was  now  a  side-table,  shone 
bunches  of  Hamburgh  grapes,  tempters  of  the  lips. 

"Van,"  asked  Wentworth,  helping  him  to  some  kid 
neys,  "do  you  see  anything  peculiar  about  that  crock  ?" 

"I  don't  know  what  your  ideas  of  peculiar  may  be, 
Wentworth, "  replied  Van ;  "for  myself,  I  have  seen  the 
Mammoth  Cave,  the  Coliseum,  and  the  crater  of  Vesu 
vius,  but  for  vastness,  for  profundity,  for  grandeur,  I  don't 
think  I  ever  saw  anything  that  quite  comes  up  to  that 
crock.  Why,  old  boy,  if  you  were  to  transport  that  crock 
on  the  Great  Eastern  to  Italy,  two  millions  of  lazzaroni 
would  fall  down  and  worship  it.  It  would  be  canonized 
shortly,  and  have  masses  said  to  it.  What  delicious  kid 
neys  these  are  !  How  did  you  do  them  so  nicely  ?" 

"Van,"  answered  Wentworth,  a  look  of  humor  passing 
over  his,  and  Lewis's  face,  * '  in  the  matter  of  kidneys,  noth 
ing  is  unknown  to  us.  As  your  remark  implies,  there  are 
kidneys  and  kidneys,  and  thereby  hangs  a  tale.  The 
doctrine  of  total  depravity  one  never  thoroughly  believes 
until  he  purchases  kidneys.  A  week  ago  I  called  at  the 
butcher's,  and  ordered  him  to  send  me  half  a  dozen  lamb- 
kidneys  for  dinner.  '  I  have  no  lamb-kidneys  to-day, '  the 
butcher  replied,  'but  I  have  an  article,'  he  added  oblig 
ingly,  which  I  think  will  suit  you  much  better.  I  have 
just  received  some  very  fine  ox  or  bull-kidneys,  which 
are  in  every  respect  superior  to  lamb-kidneys.  They  are 
much  larger,  cheaper,  and  more  nourishing,  and  are  pre 
ferred  altogether  by  the  boarding-house  keepers  of  the 
vicinity. " 


Fair  Harvard.  123 

At  six  o'clock,  Lewis  returned  from  recitation,  and 
found  dinner  already  served.  Chief  of  dishes  stood  in  the 
centre  of  the  table  an  immense,  brown,  fragrant  kidney, 
sizzling  and  stirring,  as  if  eager  to  leap  the  barrier  of  your 
teeth.  Lewis  and  I  were  famishing,  and  as  soon  as  he 
was  seated,  I  seized  a  knife  to  divide  our  beloved  kidney 
into  two  equal  parts.  Van,  you  know  I  am  a  strong  man, 
for  I  have  often  punished  you  severely.  The  knife  had 
just  been  sharpened.  '  Lewis/  said  I,  after  a  few  minutes' 
effort,  '  Lewis,  to  confess  the  truth,  I  have  dined  to-day, 
and  feel  no  appeti^g:  you  may  have  the  kidney  entire." 

Van  laughed  heartily  at  the  dolorous  tale  of  the  bull-kid 
ney,  as  Wentworth  heaped  a  plate  for  him  with  pie  from 
the  wealthy  crock. 

' '  Rather  an  odd  thing  happened  here  yesterday,  Van, " 
the  latter  remarked,  as  he  passed  the  plate  to  his  guest. 
"I  was  seated  in  my  room  reading,  when  down  rushed  a 
theolog,  named  Gandy  Stubs,  and  nearly  broke  open  the 
door.  '  What  do  you  want  ?'  I  yelled  at  him  in  great  rage. 
'  Come  quick/  he  cried,  '  brother  Sallows  has  a  fit.  I  heard 
him  groaning  in  his  room,  and  I  can't  get  in.  I'm  afraid 
he's  dying. '  I  opened  the  door,  and  in  a  few  minutes  we 
had  a  ladder  against  Sallow's  window,  and  I  was  climbing 
up  it,  when  Gandy  twitched  my  coat.  'I  forgot  to  tell 
you/  he  whispered  hesitatingly,  'I  looked  through  the  key 
hole — you  may  not  like  to  go  into  the  room — he  is  stark 
naked.'  '  Naked  !'  cried  I ;  '  in  these  costly  times,  would  we 
were  all  naked  !'  At  this  Stubs  fainted  dead  away,  and  I 
ran  up  the  ladder  into  Sallow's  room." 


124  Fair  Harvard. 

"  What  was  the  matter  with  Sallows?"  asked  Van. 

"Oh  he  only  had  a  fit  caused  by  over-discipline.  The 
doctor  came  in  a  few  minutes,  and  brought  him  to.  By 
the  way,  Van,  wouldn't  you  like  to  attend  a  spiritualists' 
meeting  ?  Lewis  and  I  have  discovered  that  we  are  me 
diums." 

"  Hamilton  may  have  some  affinity  with  a  better  world," 
answered  Van,  "but  I  should  hate  to  place  much  confi 
dence  in  the  spirits  you  would  summon,  Wentworth." 

"This  levity,  Van,"  returned  our  hero  with  dignity,  "is 
suited  neither  to  the  person  nor  the  subject.  If  you  will 
call  here  to-morrow  in  the  broad  daylight,  we'll  prove  to 
you  that  there's  no  humbug  about  the  matter.  We  hold  a 
seance  with  one  or  two  spirits  almost  every  day  at  about 
twelve  o'clock.  Last  Thursday  we  had  four  or  five  rapping 
together,  and  it  seemed  as  though  all  Heaven  had  broke 
loose.  I  have  learnt  to  distinguish  them  very  readily 
now.  l  Ah/  I  say,  as  I  hear  a  sullen  knock  like  the  kick 
of  a  horse,  '  that's  brother  Reynhold's  spirit.  It  has  come 
to  instruct  us  touching  the  prices  of  tilburies  and  high-step 
ping  steeds  in  our  Freshman  year.  'That/  I  exclaim  as 
a  dapper  little  rat-a-tap  follows,  *  that's  brother  Scissors' 
spirit.  It  can  tell  us  about  garments  of  price  and  the 
fashions  of  the  good  old  times/  One  can  learn  a  great 
deal  from  the  spirits ;  but  it  is  all  about  the  past ;  it  is  a 
mistake  to  suppose  that  they  ever  prophesy." 

"More  than  all  the  other  vices  which  I  see  in  the 
world/'  said  Van,  "that  love  of  money  which  drives  men 
to  seek  the  payment  of  the  debts  due  them  fills  me  with 


Fair  Harvard.  125 

sadness.  This  is  the  great  bar  which  prevents  the  free  in 
terchange  of  property,  and  brings  about  that  stagnation  in 
business,  which  political  economists  hold  to  be  the  sum- 
mum  malum.  An  American  gentleman  especially  should 
never,  by  base  payments,  pander  to  that  love  of  gain  which 
has  made  our  name  a  reproach  among  the  nations." 

''One  would  scarcely,  without  experience,"  mused 
Wentworth,  "believe  the  extent  to  which  the  morals  of 
the  ignorant  classes  have  been  undermined  by  this  vice. 
With  most  men  it  is  more  than  a  vice  ;  it  amounts  to  a  con 
firmed  passion,  like  drinking  or  gaming.  Creditors  have 
been  known  to  interrupt  one's  study  of  the  true,  the  beau 
tiful,  and  the  good,  to  urge  their  ill-timed  claims/' 

.   .  .   .   "  Quid  non  mortalia  pectora  cogis, 
Auri  sacra  i'ames  ?" 

cried  Van,  aghast  with  horror.  "  It  is  lucky,  old  boy," 
he  added  recovering  his  self-possession,  ' '  that  you  are  not 
living  a  hundred  years  ago.  Then  the  lower  classes  of 
society,  tradesmen,  creditors,  and  the  like,  could  clap  a 
scholar  into  prison  to  gratify  their  mean  envy.  Those  in 
famous  laws  almost  strangled  literature  for  hundreds  of 
years ;  I  don't  see  how  it  survived  them.  However,  I 
suppose  Hamilton  will  tell  us,  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  is 
the  seed  of  the  church." 

"After  all,  Van,"  said  our  hero,  who  was  a  generous  fel 
low,  and  like  Uncle  Toby  could  not  hate  even  the  Devil 
with  proper  fervor,  "creditors serve  certain  useful  purposes. 
They  are  no  snobs,  and  cling  to  you  in  adversity  even 
more  closely  than  in  prosperity.  As  they  do  this  from  self- 


126  Fair  Harvard. 

interest,  you  have  the  cheerful  feeling  so  long  as  they 
seek  your  society,  that  your  affairs  cannot  be  desperate. 
While  there  is  a  creditor,  there  is  hope.  How  truly 
wretched  the  life  of  a  debtor  abandoned  by  all  his  creditors. 
Yet  even  then  a  religious  man  might  strengthen  his  faith 
by  thinking  of  debts  which  he  could  never  hope  to  pay. 
*  If  a  material  hat,  or  the  vulgar  matter  of  a  pair  of  trou 
sers/  he  could  reflect,  'can  by  the  holy  touch  of  credit 
be  spiritualized  into  an  immortal  claim,  surely  there  must 
be  more  than  hope  for  the  human  soul.' " 

"I  am  afraid,  Wentworth/'  said  Lewis,  "if  you  jest 
about  sacred  subjects  in  that  way,  your  immortality  will  not 
be  a  happy  one." 

' '  I  have  a  plan  for  you,  Wentworth, "  suggested  Van. 
"  Why  don't  you  adopt  a  Rothschild  or  an  Astor  for  your 
father.  Yet,  on  the  whole,  I  would  advise  you  not  to  do 
it.  Why  should  you  be  charitable  ?  It  doesn't  pay.  Let 
them  die  in  their  poverty.  Next  to  an  Alexander  who  has 
all  things,  the  richest  man  is  a  Diogenes  who  wants  noth 
ing." 

"  'Next  to  rooming  in  Hoi  worthy,  it  is  best  to  room  in 
Divinity  Hall/  I  suppose  a  college-man  would  put  it,  Van. 
Let  me  help  you  to  some  more  pie." 

"  Not  for  the  world,  old  boy  ;  I  haven't  eaten  so  much 
for  years  ;  even  Ayres  would  swell  with  envy. " 

The  table  was  then  cleared  for  dessert ;  after  which  the 
boys  filled  their  cups  afresh  with  coffee,  and  lighted  their 
cigars. 

"  Your  old  teacher,  W'haleham,  examined  us  in  Trigono- 


Fair  Harvard. 

metry  Friday,"  remarked  Van,  as,  cocking  his  heels  upon 
the  window-sill,  he  aimed  to  unite  comfort  with  grace. 
"What  a  muscular  Christian  he  is  !'' 

»  I  should  like  to  have  seen  my  dear  preceptor,  Van/' 
mused  Wentworth.      "  I  can  remember,  as  though  it  were 
yesterday,  the  years  I  spent  at  his  school.     Just  one  week 
after  I  entered,  Whaleham  came  running  down  into  the 
room  of  our  usher,   dragging  after   him   a   little   beggar, 
whom  he  had  thrashed  nearly  to  death.     He  made  the  boy 
tell  his  story  to  us,  and  then  asked,    '  Who  believes  that 
boy's  story?'  We  all  pitied  the  little  devil,  and  stood  up  in 
assent.     Whaleham's  face  at  once  assumed  the  expression 
of  a  baffled  tom-cat.     He  raved,  howled  and  tore  himself 
for  five  minutes,  and  then  yelled,  '  Who  believes  that  boy's 
story  now?'  No  one  rose  except  me.     The  gentle  Ascham 
glared  around  savagely  a  minute,  then  pointed  at  me  a  fin 
ger  of  scorn,  and  hissed  out,  '  Henceforth  that  boy's  word 
can  never  be  believed/     He  had  spoken,  and  from  that 
moment  until  I  left  school,  he  never  ceased  on  all  occa 
sions  to  revile  me  like  a  pickpocket." 

"I  thought  you  stood  at  the  head  of  your  class,"  said 

Lewis/' 

"So  I  did  generally,  and  that  provoked  him  more  than 
anything  else.  It  obliged  him  to  somewhat  limit  his  abuse 
to  my  character,  when  it  would  have  been  so  much  more 
gratifying  sarcasm  to  call  me  a  fool.  'I  confess,  Sauls- 
bury,  you  are  not  so  great  a  dunce,'  he  would  complain 
bitterly,  '  as  I  once  thought  you,  but  your  moral  turpitude 
grows  blacker  and  blacker/  Urging  one  day  the  advan- 


128  Fair  Harvard. 

tage  to  a  boy  of  standing  well  with  his  teacher,  he  spoke  of 
an  old  scholar  of  his,  who  had  committed  a  forgery,  but 
who  had  been  pardoned  by  the  injured  persons,  on  ac 
count  of  his  good  character  at  school.  I  well  remember 
the  prophetic  manner  in  which  he  eyed  me  during  the  nar 
rative,  as  one  sure  to  commit  the  crime,  but  against  whose 
punishment  no  such  bar  could  be  interposed.  He  used, 
in  his  leisure  moments,  to  amuse  the  class  with  drawing 
pictures  of  my  future  career,  and  my  probable  mode  of 
ending  it,  which  were  much  more  graphic  than  nattering. 
A  gallows  I  came  to  look  upon  as  my  only  means  of  gain 
ing  a  higher  sphere ;  though  in  the  flood  of  youthful 
spirits,  I  at  times  indulged  the  fond  hope  of  dying  quietly 
in  a  prison  or  the  work-house.  Once  at  least  every  day, 
Whaleham  used  to  start  from  his  seat,  make  the  letter  V 
with  his  two  fore-fingers,  and  poke  it  towards  me. 
'Saulsbury/  he  then  shouts,  'which  horn  do  you  take?' 
1  What  is  the  dilemma?'  I  inquire  humbly.  'Acknowl 
edge  yourself  to  be  either  a  boor  or  a  knave.'  'I 
should  prefer  to  take  neither  horn/  'Then  take  a 
thrashing/  he  shrieks.  'In  that  alternative,'  I  answer 
meekly,  'the  attractions  of  each  epithet  seem  so  equally 
balanced,  I  will  willingly  allow  you  the  choice/  'Choose/ 
he  thunders,  gnashing  his  teeth,  and  shaking  his  shaggy 
mane.  '  If  I  must  choose  myself,  I  prefer  the  former 
horn  ;  no,  the  latter  ;  no,  on  the  whole  I  will  take  the  for 
mer/  With  each  doubt,  Whaleham  advances  a  step,  bran 
dishing  a  huge  ruler  :  at  my  decision,  he  throws  the  ruler 


Fair  Harvard.  129 

on  the  table,  shakes  the  building  with  a  pacific  frown,  gives 
a  contented  grunt,  and  takes  his  seat  victorious." 

11  What  made  the  fellow  dislike  you  so  ?"  asked  Van. 

"  I  never  knew  till  one  day,  a  short  time  before  I  left 
the  school,  he  gave  me  a  sudden  look  of  hatred,  and  said, 
*  that  boy  prides  hi:nself  on  being  a  gentleman  ;  who 
doesn't  think  he  is  the  worst  boy  in  the  class  ?'  " 

"What  did  they  say  ?"  asked  Van,  who  looked  on  Went- 
worth  as  too  moral  a  man  to  live  long. 

"  They  all  agreed  with  him,  every  one  of  them,  and  I 
have  never  cared  to  speak  to  any  of  them  since. " 

"  I  don't  wonder.  It  must  have  been  hard  for  a  gentle 
man  to  breathe  in  such  a  den. " 

' '  I  remember,  Van,  I  used  regularly  every  night  to  pray 
God  to  strike  Whaleham  dead  in  his  bed.  Yet  the  next 
morning  there  he  was,  seated  at  his  desk  unblushingly  alive. 
It  made  me  a  skeptic  for  some  years,  to  find  my  prayers 
unanswered." 

"You  like  to  make  yourself  out  as  bad  as  possible," 
said  Lewis,  looking  at  our  hero  with  generous  admira 
tion.  ' '  Have  you  heard,  Van  Courtland,  what  Wentworth 
did  the  other  night  ?  Sweatrame  invited  him  to  meet  a 
party  of  men  to  organize  a  scheme  for  hazing.  Wentworth 
went  to  the  meeting  and  told  the  fellows  that  as  he  had 
thought  it  low  in  any  one  to  attempt  to  haze  him,  when  he 
was  a  Freshman,  so  he  thought  it  would  be  now  equally 
low  in  him  to  attempt  to  haze  any  one  else.  He  came 
near  having  a  row  with  Sweatrame. " 

"I  heard  something  about  it  from  the  other  side,"  re- 


130  Fair  Harvard. 

plied  Van,  "Sweatrame  is  in  our  club-table,  you  know. 
Still,  I  don't  more  than  half  like  him  ;  I  don't  see  why 
they  elected  him  among  the  first  ten.  You  must  each  of 
you,  now  I  think  of  it,  promise  me  a  piece  for  my  paper 
next  Friday.  I  have  as  yet  nothing  but  some  verses  from 
Ayres,  and  an  essay  by  Bowyer  on  the  Athenian  trireme." 

"How  does  Ayres  write?"  asked  Wentworth,  "He  is 
such  a  good-natured,  pleasant  fellow.  Last  term  I  remem 
ber  the  only  question  which  seemed  to  give  him  any  great 
concern  was  the  relative  social  position  of  your  and  our 
club-tables.  'Though  Van  Courtland's  table,' he  used  to 
repeat  daily,  'may  stand  belter  with  fast  men,  yet,  if  you  were 
to  take  the  opinion  of  the  whole  class,  I  think  it  would  be 
greatly  in  favor  of  our  own.'" 

"His  verses  draw  a  different  character  for  himself — a 
proud,  reckless,  blighted  heart — a  man  who  has  drained 
the  cup  of  pleasure  and  found  it  wormwood,  and  all  that 
sort  of  thing.  By  the  way,  Wentworth,  don't  you  want  to 
go  on  an  adventure  some  night  with  Brandreth  and  my 
self?  We  are  running  an  opposition  to  the  Med.  Fac., 
and  have  hired  a  house  behind  Hill's  stable,  where  we 
keep  our  lanterns,  tools,  and  dresses.  The  situation  is 
capital.  You  can  reach  the  house  through  the  street,  or 
through  the  stable,  which  is  open  all  night,  or  through 
the  churchyard  lane.  You  must  go  with  us  some  time, 
old  boy  ;  it  is  really  exciting." 

"There's  nothing  I  should  like  better,  Van;  do  count 
me  in,  please,  on  your  next  expedition." 


Fair  Harvard. 


131 


As  Wentworth  finished  speaking,  the  second  bell 
for  morning  service  began  to  ring,  at  which  the  three 
boys  strolled  over  to  the  chapel,  and  were  soon  fast 
asleep. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"Noris  nos,"  inquit ;  "docti  sumus." 

rIE  blossoming  of  the  Freshman  worm  into  the 
Sophomoric  butterfly  is  a  beautiful  spectacle. 

The  Freshman  is  too  near  the  base  world,  not 
to  be  somewhat  tainted  by  its  traditions. 

The  Sophomore  !  what  happened  to  him  before  he  en 
tered  college  floats  behind  him  as  vague  as  the  antenuptial 
dreams  of  our  parents,  that  hover  about  our  infancy. 
Memory,  shod  with  seven  league  boots,  can  scarcely  reach 
that  distant  time. 

This  great  change  finds  its  best  opportunity  to  prove  it 
self  in  the  "Institute  of  1 770.  " 

The  members  of  this  Society,  as  in  all  clubs  in  Harvard, 
literary  or  otherwise,  except  the  $.  B.  K. ,  are  chosen  on  ac 
count  of  their  social  qualities,  and  number  about  half  the 
class. 

Class  feeling  receives  a  severe  blow  from  this  division, 
and  the  two  factions  view  each  other  with  a  repugnance 
which  deepens  into  hostility  in  the  Junior  and  Senior 
years. 

The  Friday  following  the  breakfast  given  to  Van,  Went- 


Fair  Harvard.  133 

worth  and  Lewis  took  tea  with  their  friend,  and  shortly  after 
sauntered  with  him  into  the  "Institute"  rooms.  There 
they  found  a  large  audience,  and  Hayward  at  the  desk  in 
the  middle  of  an  oration,  the  first  exercise  of  the  evening 
after  the  secretary's  report.  The  subject  of  the  oration, 
Bowyer  whispered  to  Wentworth,  was  "The  Man,"  and 
Hayward  was  pronouncing  himself  with  earnestness  against 
the  masses,  and  asserting  that  all  truth,  all  power,  all 
good,  sprang  from  the  individual. 

Rounds  of  applause  interrupted  the  course  of  the  oration, 
and  at  its  conclusion  Rakeman,  who  was  President,  an 
nounced  as  Editor  of  the  evening  Mr.  Schuyler  Van  Court- 
land. 

Van  rose  amid  a  great  clapping  of  hands,  and  opened  his 
paper.  His  first  piece,  which,  at  the  risk  of  tediousness, 
we  shall  quote  at  length,  was  entitled — 

"THE  COLLEGE  PUMP." 

"A  few  days  since, "  it  began,  "I  was  returning  some 
what  late  from  Boston,  to  my  room  in  Hollis  Hall.  My 
friends,  with  whom  I  had  been  having  a  very  pleasant 
evening  at  Parker's  familiar  rendezvous,  had  preferred  to 
remain  there  during  the  night,  so  that  I  was  alone.  There 
was  a  turbulent  fellow  in  the  horse-car  with  me,  who  made 
a  great  disturbance,  and  two  or  three  respectable  old  gen 
tlemen  cried  'Put  him  out/  This  seemed  to  sober  him 
down,  for  I  looked  carefully  all  about  the  car,  but  could 
not  find  who  it  was. 

"On  reaching  Cambridge,  I  passed  through   the  gate 


134  Fair  Harvard. 

by  the  old  President's  house  into  the  college  yard,  and 
strolled  towards  Hollis.  Everything  around  me  seemed 
to  be  under  some  mysterious  influence.  The  sky  was 
wide  awake,  and  winking  in  the  most  knowing  man 
ner  with  its  thousand  eyes.  I  couldn't  make  out  at 
what,  till  I  saw  the  moon  reeling  half  soaked  out  of  a 
cloud.  The  old  elms  in  the  yard  swayed  this  way  and 
that,  and  some  of  them  followed  me  as  though  I  were  an 
Orpheus.  Their  leaves  were  coquetting  with  the  wind, 
and  now  shadowed,  now  disclosed  troops  of  golden-haired 
elves,  who  displayed  pairs  of  very  pretty  ankles,  as  they 
danced  over  the  tops  of  the  grass.  They  looked  for  all  the 
world  like  dandelions,  and  their  shrill  voices  you  could 
hardly  distinguish  from  cicadae.  Even  old  University 
Building  stood  uneasily  on  his  stout  legs,  and  leaned  to 
ward  Holworthy,  the  youngest  of  the  Dormitories,  with  as 
soft  a  glance  as  can  kindle  in  the  eye  of  hoary  granite. 
He  longed,  no  doubt,  to  clasp  his  manly  arm  around  her 
buxom  waist  and  cut  pigeon  wings  with  her  over  the  quiet 
town. 

"Suddenly  I  heard  a  noise  overheard,  and  looking  up, 
beheld  flying  through  the  air,  the  long  line  of  college 
Goodies,  headed  by  the  Regina,  each  bestriding  a  besom. 
You  would  scarcely  have  believed  they  were  not  a  flock  of 
geese  flying  one  behind  the  other,  but  I  recognized  the 
voice  of  my  old  goody  Lovedust,  and  knew  the  careless 
swing  of  her  broom.  They  were  steering  northward,  doubt 
less  towards  the  witches'  Mecca,  Salem,  there  to  perform 
their  hellish  rites.  I  thought  I  saw  a  Freshman  in  the 


Fair  Harvard.  135 

claws  of  the  Regina,  and  shuddered  at  his  fate,"  [immense 
applause  with  hand  and  heel,  ]  ' '  but  that  may  have  been 
mere  fancy. 

"I  had  now  reached  the  pump,  and  feeling  thirsty,  put 
my  lips  to  its  mouth,  and  took  a  long  drink.  As  I 
turned  to  go  away,  I  felt  a  cold  hand  seize  me  by  the 
collar.  My  blood  froze,  my  knees  knocked  together,  and 
looking  at  the  pump,  I  was  horror-stricken  to  see  how  like 
a  human  being  it  had  become.  It  bore  a  startling  resem 
blance  to  the  portrait  of  my  great  grandfather,  who  lost  an 
arm  at  Bunker  Hill. 

"  '  Unhand  me,  sir  !'  said  I  at  length,  mustering  courage, 
and  I  was  about  to  strike  him,  but  his  venerable  appear 
ance  checked  my  blow.  Soon  he  dropped  his  arm,  but 
held  me  spell-bound  by  his  glassy  eye.  Then  a  deep 
voice,  which  nearly  frightened  my  ears  off,  issued  from  him. 
' ' '  My  friend, '  he  said,  '  I  have  been  warned  by  many 
unlucky  omens  that  my  end  is  drawing  near,  and  wish  to 
leave  behind  me  some  memorial  of  a  long  and  eventful 
life.' 

"  'You  aie  blue,  old  boy,'  said  I  with  affected  cheerful 
ness,  'and  no  wonder,  you  are  such  a  confirmed  water 
drinker.  If  you  will  only  take  a  glass  of  some  more  gen 
erous  liquid,  you'll  grow  more  hopeful/ 

' '  The  old  gentleman  shook  his  head  despondently,  and 
looking  at  him  more  closely,  I  saw  that  he  bore  the  marks 
of  violence.  The  top  of  his  head  was  laid  bare,  as  by  a 
seal  ping-knife,  and  every  little  while  he  seemed  convulsed 
with  pain. 


136  Fair  Harvard. 

"  '  My  friend/  he  continued,  after  a  short  pause,  straight-, 
ening  himself  up  by  a  great  effort,  '  it  may  be  the  idle 
presentiment  of  age,  but  I  dare  not  indulge  such  a  belief. 
Your  bright  eye,  and  firm  step,  proclaim  you  a  Sopho 
more/  [renewed  applause,]  'and  you  may  possibly  pre 
serve  my  life  a  few  years  longer.'  '  Believe  me/  interposed 
I,  placing  my  hand  on  my  heart,  for  I  was  touched  by  his 
confidence,  '  anything  which  I  can  do  to  oblige  a  gentle 
man  holding  so  useful,  though  ancillary  a  position  in 
society' — 'I  will  tell  you  my  history,  that  you  may  plead 
in  my  behalf/  returned  the  pump  with  a  chaste  smile  of 
gratitude. 

"  'I  was  born  on  Waver  ley  Hills,  and  can  but  just  re 
member  the  pleasant  time  of  my  youth.  It  was  passed 
in  innocence,  and  the  quiet  pleasures  of  a  country  life.  I 
knew  nothing  of  the  world  then,  and  could  not  have  told 
a  Sophomore  from  a  Freshman/  [exclamations  of  horror,] 
1  and  of  Latin  and  Greek,  I  had  not  even  heard  the  names. 
Yet  I  was  very  happy  in  those  days,  and  can  still  recall 
the  songs  the  larks  used  to  sing  me  in  the  mornings.  I 
thought  them  very  fine  then,  though  of  course  they  were 
nothing  to  your  Glee  Club — but  I  grow  garrulous. 

"  '  One  day  I  was  stunned  by  a  heavy  blow,  and  when  I 
awoke  from  my  swoon,  found  myself  stript  of  my  bark 
and  leaves,  and  with  only  one  of  my  branches  left.  Look 
ing  around  me,  I  saw  several  large  brick  buildings,  and  a 
stretch  of  green  shaded  with  trees,  under  which  were  hur 
rying  to  and  fro,  a  number  of  men  in  long  black  dresses. 
Presently  a  strange  object,  something  like  a  woman,  placed 


Fair  Harvard.  137 

a  pail  before  me,  and  seizing  my  branch,  moved  it  up  and 
down.  I  felt  a  sudden  stirring  in  my  bowels,  and  then 
first  learnt  that  I  had  become  a  pump.  After  a  few  days  I 
caught  from  the  men  who  came  to  drink  from  me,  that  I 
was  a  member  of  Harvard  College,  and  in  a  few  months  I 
knew  all  about  the  place,  and  became  a  very  fair  scholar. 
At  first  I  had  but  little  time  to  study :  they  were  just  finish 
ing  that  large  white  building  yonder,  and  I  had  to  work 
hard  to  give  the  '  hands '  water.  It  was  very  painful  for 
me  I  remember,  even  then,  to  water  plebeians,  for  I  have 
always  had  a  student's  pride,  and  hate  and  avoid  the  vulgar. 
"  'Kirkland  was  President  of  the  college  when  I  entered, 
and  a  very  good  President  he  was,  too.  Though  a  learned 
man,  he  was  even  more  distinguished  for  his  wit  and 
genial  humor,  than  for  his  scholarship.  I  remember  him 
distinctly,  and  all  the  men  of  his  day.  There  was  Frisbie, 
who  first  taught  me  Horace  :  poor  fellow  !  he  could  scarcely 
see  to  read,  and  used  to  recite  me  the  odes  from  memory. 
Farrar  was  professor  then,  and  such  a  wonderful  mathema 
tician.  I  have  never  met  since.  Before  he  took  a  drink,  he 
used  always  to  calculate,  from  the  last  rain,  the  exact  num 
ber  of  strokes  required  to  bring  up  the  water.  One  of  the 
best  men  I  have  ever  known  was  Henry  Ware,  who  took  a 
friendly  interest  in  me,  from  the  moment  I  entered  col 
lege.  He  woke  in  me  a  sense  of  my  reponsibility  as  a 
moral  agent,  and  ever  since  his  first  draught  I  have 
pumped  from  purer  motives  than  before.  Hedge  was 
another  professor  to  whom  I  have  always  felt  greatly 
indebted,  through  for  different  reasons.  When  he  first 


138  Fair  Harvard. 

introduced  himself  to  me,  he  asked  me  solemnly,  '  What 
is  a  pump?  or  rather,  a  pump  is  what?  This  question 
gave  me  a  strange  sensation,  as  though  I  had  taken  an 
emetic,  and  first  taught  me  to  look  below  the  surface  of 
things.  I  owe  to  Professor  Hedge,  more  than  to  any  other 
man,  my  critical  knowledge  of  myself,  and  the  rest  of  the 
Universe.  But  Popkins,  of  all  the  professors  of  that  time, 
was  my  most  intimate  friend.  He  used  to  drink  from  me 
regularly,  two  or  three  times  a  day.  'It  is  so  refreshing/ 
he  would  exclaim,  '  after  my  long  nine  !'  Poor  old  Pop  ! 
what  pleasant  chats  we  have  had  together  !  If  what  I  hear 
some  students  say  now-a-days  is  true,  that  men  who  smoke 
here,  bum  hereafter,  how  I  wish  I  could  give  you  a  long 
drink  from  my  spout  now. 

"  'After  some  years,  Kirkland  resigned  his  place,  and  a 
new  President  was  elected  over  us,  named  Quincy.  He 
was  not  so  clever  or  social  as  Kirkland,  but  he  was  a 
very  brisk  man,  and  secured  a  new  handle  for  me  in 
his  reign.  By-and-by  Quincy  also  went  away,  and 
Everett  ruled  in  his  stead.  When  he  first  came  for  a 
drink  he  frightened  me  by  his  manner,  it  was  so  grand. 
Shortly  afterwards,  however,  I  had  a  new  trough  made, 
and  Everett  delivered  the  oration  on  the  occasion,  in  which 
he  compared  me  to  Arethusa.  I  always  respected  him 
highly  after  that,  though  we  were  never  familiar. 

"  '  I  could  tell  you  a  great  deal  more  about  the  officers 
and  students  of  those  old  days — stories  which  would  interest 
you  very  much — if  I  had  time.  Men  late  at  night,  have 
often  made  me  their  confidant,  and  leaning  upon  me  in  the 


Fair  Harvard.  139 

most    friendly    way,    have    whispered  in    my  ear  secrets 
about  Boston,  and  the  sights  one  sees  in  that  great  capital. 

Only  the  other  day  Toughnut  and  Bird — they  are  Sopho 
mores,  you  know — came  reeling  up  to  me,  and  told  me  of 
many  strange  adventures  with  which  they  had  met. 
Toughnut  then,  in  the  coolest  manner,  sat  down  in  my 
trough,  and  asked  Bird  to  pump,  on  him.  I  gave  him 
a  good  drenching,  you  can  wager  my  handle ;  for  I  am  a 
pump  of  humor ;  and  often  when  strapping  Sophomores 
come  for  a  drink,  I  make  them  sweat  a  long  time  :  but 
tender  little  Freshmen,  I  give  them  a  drink  at  once ;' 
[tremendous  applause,]  'for  I  pity  the  poor  boys,  so  far 
away  from  their  mothers  ;'  [heels  and  hands,  and  cries  of 
"Good!"  "Good!"]  'Then  their  breath  smells  so 
sweet,  and  not  like  college  men's.  Why,  when  Toughnut 
takes  a  drink,  he  leaves  a  fiery  taste  in  my  mouth  which 
makes  my  head  grow  dizzy,  and  my  arm  move  up  and 
down,  like  one  of  our  public  speakers.  I  have  witnessed 
a  great  many  wild  scenes  in  college,  and  if  I  chose  to  let 
the  Faculty  know — but  a  pump  is  more  honorable  than 
men  when  alive,  and  never  tells  tales/ 

' '  The  old  gentleman  riere  gave  a  gurgling  sound  so  like  a 
death  rattle  that  I  was  seized  with  fear,  lest  he  should  die 
suddenly  and  I  should  be  hanged  for  his  murder. 

"  '  Do  not  be  alarmed/  he  soon  reassumed  me  by  say 
ing,  'that  was  a  hawk,  nothing  more.  We  pumps  are 
peculiarly  subject  to  colds  ;  it  comes  from  our  wet  feet  and 
long  throats.  I  have  still  some  hours  to  live  ;  but  I  must 
finish  my  history.  Two  nights  ago  I  was  awakened  by 


140  Fair  Harvard. 

some  students  out  of  a  sound  sleep,  and  looking  up  saw  a 
brilliant  colored  light  in  the  centre  of  the  yard,  which  made 
the  trees  and  buildings  look  all  golden.  I  heard  a  man 
near  me  say  that  '5 —  had  set  off  a  Bengal  light,  and  that  the 
Sophomore  class  was  now  acknowledged  by  every  one  to 
be  the  greatest  class  that  had  ever  been  at  Harvard  College. 

"  '  I  had  never  seen  anything  so  beautiful  before,  and  was 
enjoying  it  greatly,  when  suddenly  I  heard  a  terrible  noise, 
and  felt  something  burst  within  me.  The  same  moment  I 
fainted  dead  away  from  pain  and  fear.  When  I  recovered 
consciousness,  I  found  that  the  top  of  my  head  had  been 
blown  off,  and  that  my  arm  was  nearly  paralyzed.  I  have 
also  received  severe  internal  wounds  from  which  I  have  lit 
tle  hope  of  recovery. 

"  'I  do  not  wish  to  say  anything  to  the  Faculty,  but  will 
not  you,  who  are  a  Sophomore,  tell  your  class  the  story  of 
my  life  and  implore  them  not  to  treat  me  in  this  cruel 
manner.  One  more  such  blow  would  be  hopelessly  fatal. 
Since  I  first  came  to  college,  I  have  never  done  or  said 
anything  to  injure  the  students,  and  my  highest  pleasure 
has  been  to  give  them  water  with  which  to  duck  wicked 
tutors.  I  do  not  deserve  such  a  return ;  it  breaks  my 
heart ;  ingratitude  more  potent  than  gunpowder  is  wasting 
me  away.' 

"The  venerable  sufferer  here  became  so  affected  that  he 
could  do  nothing  but  sigh  and  groan. 

"  'My  dear  friend/  said  I,  'your  words  command  my 
deepest  sympathy.  I  respect  you  ;  I  will  defend  you  ;  I 
will  beg — nay  I  will  command  the  class  of '5 — never 


Fair  Harvard.  141 

again  to  injure  you,  but  always  to  hold  you  in  the  highest 
honor.'  My  voice  here  choked  with  emotion,  and  I 
rested  my  head  on  the  old  man's  shoulder.  At  this  he 
gave  a  sharp  cry  of  pain. 

"  '  Pardon  me/  he  added,  '  but  I  suffer  from  an  attack  of 
acute  rheumatism  under  my  arm,  brought  on  by  my  expo 
sure.  ' 

"  'My  truest  friend, '  sobbed  I,  stiil  more  deeply  moved, 
'  your  wrongs  wring  my  very  heart  of  heart.  I  love  you  ; 
I  will  die  for  you  ;  whoever  seeks  again  to  harm  you, 
must  pass  over  my  lifeless  body,' 

"The  poor  pump  burst  into  tears  at  my  words  of  kind 
ness,  and  throwing  his  solitary  arm  about  my  neck,  long 
hung  there  weeping  as  though  I  were  his  long-lost  child. 
At  length  I  tore  myself  away,  and  walked  to  my  room,  re 
volving  this  sad  tale  in  my  mind." 

Long  and  loud  applause  followed  Van's  first  article,  and 
he  next  read,  "  A  letter  from  a  Freshman  to  his  mother," 
which  was  heard  with  convulsions  of  laughter.  This  was 
followed  by  a  more  serious  effort,  ''A  night  among  the 
Ogres,"  in  which  the  practices  of  the  College  Faculty  were 
unveiled  and  their  custom  of  feasting  on  stewed  Freshmen 
after  each  meeting  justly  denounced.  (We  have  been  re 
quested  by  the  President  of  the  college  to  state  that  these 
accounts  were  in  many  of  their  details  grossly  exaggerated. — 
THE  AUTHOR.  )  A  number  of  other  pieces  followed,  entitled 
"Character,"  "My  Chum  and  I,"  "Alone  with  my  Pipe," 
"The  Grumbler,"  "The  Athenian  Trireme,"  "A  game 
of  Billiards,"  "Remorse,  a  poem,"  "Can  a  Law-Student 


142  Fair  Harvard. 

be  a  gentleman  ?"  "  'A  Night  in  Town,"  "Whether  com 
plete  blindness  in  one  eye  should  be  accepted  by  the  Fac 
ulty  as  an  equivalent  for  being  cross-eyed  in  the  examina 
tion  of  a  candidate  for  admission  to  the  Vestal  Order  of 
College  Goodies  ?"  Space  forbids  our  quoting  more  than 
the  names  of  these  essays,  but  that  they  were  all  marked 
by  the  finest  culture  and  rarest  originality  our  readers  can 
take  our  word. 

A  vote  of  thanks  was  given  Van  as  he  took  his  seat,  and 
his  paper  acknowledged  to  be  the  best  of  the  term.  Rake- 
man  then  announced  as  the  subject  for  debate  the  question, 
"Whether  Prize-fighting  is  justifiable."  Hamilton  and 
Ayres  were  the  regular  debaters  of  the  evening  in  the  af 
firmative,  and  Bowyer  and  Sweatrame  in  the  negative,  all  of 
whom  approved  themselves  accomplished  orators.  After 
Sweatrame  had  finished  his  argument  Gowan  rose  and  made 
a  brilliant  speech  in  favor  of  the  manly  art,  closing  with  a 
tribute  to  the  great  Heenan. 

The  vote  of  the  Society  was  then  taken  and  Prize-fight 
ing  received  a  severe  check,  after  which  the  meeting  was 
adjourned  until  the  next  Friday. 


CHAPTER  X. 

"I,  fuge  ;  Bed  poteras  tutior  esse  domi." 

ONDAY  evening,  the  first  day  of  the  following 
December,  the  College  Faculty  were  seated,  as 
their  custom  is,  around  the  council  fire  in  Uni 
versity  Building,  engaged  in  earnest  consultation,  touching 
students,  their  studies,  and  moral  discipline. 

' '  Much  has  been  said  with  force  and  reason  on  both 
sides  of  this  question,"  said  the  President  in  summing  up 
a  lengthy  debate. 

"On  the  one  hand,  Van  Courtland,  it  has  been  shown, 
has  omitted  to  attend  a  large  number,  I  may  say  a  very  large 
number,  of  prayers  and  recitations.  He  has,  for  these 
omissions,  twice  received  a  'Public  Ad-monition/ and,  it 
is  well  urged,  has  merited  the  additional  punishment  of 
suspension,  if  not  expulsion  from  the  college.  This  pen 
alty,  it  is  argued,  should  be  inflicted,  not  only  as  due  to  the 
gravity  of  the  offences  themselves,  but  also  for  the  sake  of  a 
wholesome  example,  to  promote  obedience  to  our  police 
regulations,  which  have  of  late  been  frequently  disregarded. 
If  leniency  be  shown  in  this  case,  it  has  been  pertinently 
suggested,  the  Faculty  cannot,  with  so  perfect  justice, 
punish  similar  violations  of  their  laws. 


144  Fair  Harvard. 

"On  the  other  hand,  Professor  Horace  has  invited  our 
attention  to  Van  Courtland's  proficiency  in  Latin  and  other 
studies,  a  matter,  which,  though  of  less  importance  than  the 
maintenance  of  our  penal  code,  should  not  be  altogether 
overlooked.  The  arguments  seem  to  be  about  equally 
balanced,  and  I  do  not  wish  myself  to  express  any  very 
positive  opinion.  Since,  however,  you  press  me  to  give 
one,  I  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  state,  without  meaning 
in  the  least  to  influence  your  decision,  that  I  should  not  be 
greatly  opposed  to  allowing  Van  Courtland,  in  considera 
tion  of  the  excellence  of  his  recitations,  a  somewhat  longer 
opportunity  to  reform." 

The  vote  of  the  Faculty  was  then  taken,  and  resulted  in 
favor  of  Van  Courtland. 

"I  am  glad,"  continued  the  President  after  the  an 
nouncement  of  the  vote,  "  to  hear  such  good  accounts  of 
Saulsbury.  He  has  obtained  nearly  perfect  marks  in  every 
department,  and  notwithstanding  a  few  deductions,  will 
probably  be  the  first  scholar  of  his  class  for  this  year. 
Nothing  can  be  more  admirable  than  the  influence  exerted 
by  such  a  boy. " 

We  now  beg  our  readers  to  glance  upwards,  through 
two  ceilings,  and  a  slated  roof,  and  observe  two  young 
men  standing  upon  the  top  of  the  building,  near  the  cen 
tral  chimney. 

"Are  you  ready,  Wentworth?"  asks  Van  Courtland  of 
his  friend. 

"Yes,"  answers  our  hero;    "you,  Van,  go  down  the 


Fair  Harvard.  145 

rope,  and  as  soon  as  you   reach   the   ground,   give   it   a 
shake.     I'll  then  light  the  fusee,  and  hurry  after  you. " 

While  Van  is  making  his  descent,  we  will  give  our 
readers  a  brief  sketch  of  our  hero's  career  in  the  two 
months  just  past.  Wentworth  had  studied  with  his  chum 
through  this  period,  with  almost  as  much  zeal  as  during 
the  first  month  of  the  term.  After  the  novelty  of  exclusive 
devotion  to  books  had  worn  away,  however,  he  felt  his 
spirits  somewhat  droop.  He  therefore,  without  neglecting 
his  work,  mixed  more  with  his  friends,  and  again  enjoyed, 
though  now  with-  moderation,  the  delightful  social  pleas 
ures  of  college  life.  Nor  in  his  recreations  did  Wentworth 
forget  what  was  due  to  the  honor  of  his  class,  and  the 
spirit  of  his  Sophomore  year.  Although  he  refused  to  be 
long  to  the  Med.  Fac.,  on  account  of  his  dislike  to  hazing, 
he  at  times  joined  some  of  its  members,  in  their  attacks 
against  the  common  enemy  of  all  classes,  the  Faculty. 
Most  of  the  enterprises,  however,  in  which  he  took  part, 
were  executed  in  concert  with  Brandreth,  and  their  mutual 
friend  Van.  Brandreth  passed  most  of  his  nights  upon 
the  roofs  of  the  college  buildings,  which  custom  had  made 
as  safe  for  him,  as  for  the  nocturnal  cat,  and  had  gained 
the  sobriquet  of  the  ' '  lone  brave, "  from  his  love  of  soli 
tary  adventure.  About  once  a  week,  however,  when  some 
choice  scheme  offered  itself,  he  would  ask  Wentworth  and 
Van  to  meet  him  at  the  house  behind  the  stable,  which  the 
latter  and  he  had,  hired. 

There  our  three  young  warriors  put  on  the  war  paint, 
and  dug  up   the   hatchet.     Thence,  anon,   in   the  small 


146  Fair  Harvard. 

hours  of  the  night,  they  issued  upon  the  war  path,  each 
clad  in  black,  close-fitting  trousers,  light,  well  oiled 
shoes,  and  a  black  coat  buttoned  round  his  blackened 
face. 

The  first  exploit  of  the  trio  was  the  painting  on  the  wall 
of  the  chapel  just  above  the  pulpit,  the  names  of  their 
classes  '5-  and  '5-,  and  underneath  them  the  motto — 

"  Discite  justitiam  moniti,  et  non  temnere  divos." 

The  morning  following,  every  one  was  startled  by  this 
work  of  an  unseen  hand,  and  the  College  Faculty  paused  a 
moment  in  their  tyrannical  course,  struck  with  the  terror 
Belshazzar's  Court  felt,  as  the  words  of  doom  burnt  them 
selves  upon  their  eyes.  Both  classes  gained  great  glory  by 
this  achievement,  which  was  increased  a  week  later  by  the 
Rape  of  the  Bell. 

The  students,  overtaxed  with  protracted  studies,  had  long 
sighed  for  a  night's  rest  unbroken  by  the  harsh  prayer  bell. 
The  practical  friends  of  letters  in  college  had  often  attempted 
to  secure  for  them  this  boon  by  removing  the  tongue  from 
the  merciless  crier,  who  every  morning  uttered  his  dolorous 
summons  from  the  roof  of  Harvard  Hall.  But  the  efforts 
of  these  philanthropists  had  been  rendered  futile  by 
the  young  Argus-eyed  Janitor  and  bell-ringer  ordinary  to 
the  University,  who  slept  in  the  building. 

Undismayed  by  these  failures,  our  three  braves  resolved 
to  hazard  the  attempt.  One  cloudy  afternoon  as  a  division 
of  the  Senior  Class  was  going  to  recitation  in  Harvard 
Hall,  the  boys  entered  the  building  with  them  and  remained 
concealed  in  one  of  its  upper  rooms.  About  twelve  o'clock 


Fair  Harvard.  147 

they  stole  into  the  belfry  and  worked  away  at  their  task, 
each  filing  as  best  he  might  at  the  stubborn  tongue.  Three 
hours  they  labored  with  a  zeal  a  sense  of  duty  could  have 
alone  inspired.  At  length  its  tongue  was  loosened  and  the 
bell  became  a  mute.  As  Van,  however,  was  giving  the 
tongue  a  final  twist,  his  hand  slipped  and  the  bell,  in  revenge 
for  its  mayhem,  gave  one  loud  expiring  shriek  for  help. 

"We're  caught,"  whispered  Van,  as  listening  a  few  mo 
ments,  the  boys  heard  the  cat-like  tread  of  the  velvet-footed 
Janitor  on  the  stairs. 

"Suppose  we  attack  and  gag  him,"  suggested  Wentworth. 

"The  risk  is  too  great,"  returned  Brandreth,  he  will  call 
the  watchman,  and  we  shall  all  be  nabbed.  "  There  is  only 
one  way,"  he  added,  and  nodding  to  his  friends  to  imitate 
him,  he  pulled  off  his  shoes  and  stockings  and  threw  them 
with  the  tongue  of  the  bell  over  the  roof. 

The  Janitor  as  he  approached  the  belfry  chuckled,  but, 
though  chuckling,  advanced  more  slowly. 

"Come  down,"  he  cried,  rapping  on  the  scuttle. 

Hearing  no  noise  his  courage  mounted ;  he  pushed 
back  the  scuttle,  sprang  into  the  belfry  and  foamed  at  the 
mouth  to  see  three  misty  objects,  crawling  away  over  the 
roof.  The  hope  of  reward  for  a  moment  prompted  him  to 
tempt  the  aerial  chase.  A  shudder  succeeded  the  thought, 
as  his  imagination  painted  the  natural  effect  of  a  fall  of  fifty 
feet  upon  his  personal  appearance. 

"You'd  better  come  back,  you  can't  get  off,"  he  shouted, 
leaning  over  the  edge  of  the  belfry  and  straining  his  eyes 
after  the  invisible  shadows. 


148  Fair  Harvard. 

"I'll  wait  till  the  sun  rises,"  he  muttered  to  himself, 
' '  and  then  I  can  see  who  they  are. "  Thus  muttering,  he 
again  chuckled. 

"I  wish  it  were  clearer, "whispered  Brandreth,  who  with 
his  friends  had  now  reached  the  corner  of  the  roof  nearest 
Hollis  Hall,  ' '  I  can't  see  where  to  jump. " 

1 '  You're  not  going  to  jump  without  the  rope,  are  you, " 
said  Van,  who  was  not  such  a  Daedalus  as  his  friend. 

Brandreth  made  no  answer,  but  seating  himself  upon 
the  edge  of  the  roof  felt  with  his  feet  towards  Hollis,  which 
is  a  few  feet,  distant.  Suddenly  his  hand  moved  slightly  on 
the  slippery  slates,  and  the  next  moment  he  would'  have 
fallen,  but  Wentworth  and  Van  clutched  him,  and  he  him 
self  caught  his  hand  on  the  lightning  rod,  which  runs 
from  roof  to  roof. 

"Hollis  Hall  is  higher  than  Harvard,  that's  what 
frightens  me,"  he  said  as  he  regained  his  feet;  "but  here 
goes,"  and  with  a  spring  the  reckless  fellow  leaped  forward 
into  the  air. 

The  same  moment  the  two  boys  heard  his  bare  feet  clasp 
the  slates  on  the  roof  opposite,  and  saw  him  creeping  to 
the  corner  attic  window.  This  opened  at  his  knock  and 
one  end  of  a  coil  of  rope  which  a  classmate  who  occupied 
the  room  had  in  readiness  was  passed  to  him.  This  Bran 
dreth  threw  to  his  friends,  who  in  turn  made  it  fast  around 
their  waists  and  leaped  across,  Wentworth  first,  and  Van 
next.  The  boys  then  hurried  down  stairs,  picked  up  the 
spoils  of  war,  and  returned  to  their  quarters  behind  the 
stable. 


Fair  Harvard.  149 

But  the  velvet-footed  Janitor  through  the  long  hours 
stood  sentinel  over  the  roof.  Many  prayers  like  Ajax  he 
offered  up  for  light;  many  times  he  breathed  upon  his 
frosty  fingers  ;  many  times  he  stamped  with  his  velvet  feet. 

When  at  length  the  sluggard  Aurora,  struggling  from 
her  bed  of  down,  opened  her  dim  eyes,  their  first  faint 
glances  discovered  the  empty  roof,  and  the  students  '  van 
ished  into  thin  air." 

''I  have  lived,"  exclaimed  the  weary  watcher,  and  gazed 
stupidly  around  him.  Soon  he  bent  downwards  his  leaden 
steps,  a  man  well  stricken  in  years. 

The  third  exploit  of  our  young  friends  was  dedicated  to 
equity. 

"It  is  unjust,"  urged  Brandreth,  "in  the  Faculty  to 
punish  men,  whose  duties  engage  them  most  of  the  night, 
for  not  rising  to  prayers  like  common  idlers  in  the  morn 
ing." 

One  midnight,  therefore,  the  boys  opened  the  southern 
door  of  University  building,  and  locking  it  from  the  inside, 
left  the  key  in  its  place.  They  then  unlocked  a  postern 
door  to  secure  a  double  retreat  in  case  of  surprise.  Thence 
passing  up  stairs  they  entered  the  President's  room,  and 
took  from  its  hiding-place  the  key  to  the  college  safe. 
The  Regent's  room  adjacent,  where  a  year  ago  the  world 
had  trembled  with  the  Titanic  birth  throes  of  our  hero's 
class,  next  invited  them.  There  Brandreth  opened  the 
college-safe,  and  taking  out  the  college  books,  erased  from 
them  as  many  marks  against  himself  and  his  friends  for 


150  Fair  Harvard. 

" cutting"  prayers,  as  a  prudent  regard  for  their  reputation 
would  permit. 

The  mise-en-scene  of  this  adventurous  night,  long  im 
pressed  itself  upon  Wentworth's  memory. 

The  solemn  room  with  its  old  safe  and  Sibylline  books, 
in  which  the  hopes  and  fears  of  many  aspiring  youth  lie 
written  ;  the  long  table  and  stately  chair  once  awful  with 
the  stern  Regent,  now,  alas  !  profaned  ;  the  old  clock  tick 
ing  angrily  at  the  intruders ;  the  wicked  eye  of  the  dark 
lantern  stealing  around  the  walls ;  and  the  black  spectres 
busy  at  their  deed  of  darkness.  Without  reigns  silence, 
save  where  the  watchman  paces  around  the  college  to 
guard  it  from  nightly*  harm. 

At  this  very  moment,  perchance,  the  Regent  himself  at 
his  happy  home  smiles  in  peaceful  slumber.  He  is  dream 
ing  of  ' '  Private  and  Public  Admonitions  "  slowly  matur 
ing  through  their  allotted  periods.  Even  while  he  smiles, 
many  of  his  innocents  are  dying  before  their  birth  by  the 
hand  of  our  young  Herods. 

Thus  passed  the  golden  months  of  October  and  Novem 
ber  in  study  and  adventure.  The  weather  had  now  grown 
colder,  and  would  soon  compel  even  *Brandreth  to  retire 
into  winter  quarters.  One  Friday  night,  Van  musing  with 
pride  on  what  had  been  achieved,  and  eager  to  end  the 
campaign  with  a  crowning  "mercy,"  devised  an  elaborate 
scheme,  which  he  at  once  prepared  to  execute.  The  two 
following  days  there  was  a  cold  snap  in  which  Fresh  Pond 
-was  frozen  over,  but  Monday,  the  day  chosen  by  Van  to 
carry  out  his  plot,  was  warm  and  pleasant. 


Fair  Harvard.  151 

About  dusk  on  that  day  a  cart  drove  rapidly  through  the 
yard  to  the  cedar  grove  behind  University  Building.  The 
driver  took  from  it  a  small  barrel,  which  he  gave  into  the 
hands  of  Rakeman  an-d  Brandreth,  who  were  there  sta 
tioned. 

This  and  a  ladder  which  shortly  made  its  appearance 
with  Bowyer  and  Sweatrarne  were  hidden  away  in  the 
bushes. 

About  half  an  hour  later  a  rattling  was  heard  on  the 
roof  of  the  building,  and  a  rope  uncoiled  itself  to  the 
ground.  This  Brandreth  made  fast  to  the  ladder,  which 
was  then  drawn  up  the  side  of  the  building.  Soon  the 
rope  again  fell  and  the  barrel  followed  the  ladder.  The 
unseen  agents  above  were  Wentworth  and  Van  Courtland. 
These  late  in  the  afternoon  had  entered  University  by  a 
back  door,  and.  remained  concealed  thereuntil  the  even 
ing.  They  had  then  climbed  upon  the  roof,  carrying  with 
them  a  coil  of  rope,  a  paint  pot,  and  an  effigy  of  Tutor 
Brown. 

Van's  plan  proposed  nothing  less  than  to  burn  a  barrel 
of  chemicals  over  the  heads  of  the  Faculty,  while  seated  in 
council,  and  underneath  the  barrel  to  hang  in  effigy  one  of 
its  members. 

The  barrel  had  been  prepared*  by  the  ablest  chemists  in 
College,  and  all  danger  of  its  setting  the  building  on  fire 
had  been  guarded  against. 

Our  friends  as  soon  as  they  had  mounted  the  roof  had 
painted  the  name  of  their  class  in  large  white  letters  upon 
the  chimney. 


152  Fair  Harvard. 

They  had  then  by  the  help  of  the  ladder  hung  their  vic 
tim  by  the  neck  to  the  chimney-top,  and  had  again  let 
down  the  rope  for  the  barrel. 

"Confound  it,"  whispered  Wentworth,  as  they  lifted  the 
barrel  upon  the  roof,  "  I've  knocked  out  the  fusee." 

"Never  mind,"  answered  Van,  "stick  it  in  again,  it  will 
go  all  right/'  and  he  helped  Wentworth  place  the  barrel 
in  the  chimney. 

The  boys  below  meanwhile  separated  and  took  up  their 
positions  as  scouts,  one  on  each  side  of  the  building.  It 
was  at  this  point  that  our  own  attention  was  called  away 
from  the  proceedings  of  the  Faculty,  to  observe  what  was 
going  on  over  their  heads. 

' '  Are  you  ready,  Wentworth  ? "  asks  Van  Courtland  of 
his  friend. 

' '  Yes, "  answers  our  hero,  ' '  you,  Van,  go  down  the  rope 
and  as  soon  as  you  reach  the  ground  give  it  a  shake.  I'll 
then  light  the  fusee  and  hurry  after  you. " 

"All  right,"  replied  Van,  and  glided  swiftly  down.  He 
had  reached  but  half  way  to  the  ground,  when  he  heard 
Rakeman's  warning  whistle,  and  swung  himself  into  the 
shadow  of  a  window. 

"By  Jove,  it's  the  college  watchman,"  he  muttered, 
catching  sight  of  a  figure  pacing  along  the  path. 

In  a  few  minutes  the  watch  had  passed  out  of  hearing, 
and  Van  descended  to  the  ground. 

' '  Ready  !  "  he  said,  as  his  scouts  gathered  round  him, 
and  he  gave  the  rope  a  shake. 


Fair    Harvard.  153 

The  next  moment  a  loud  report  was  heard  upon  the 
roof. 

"The  devil ! "  cried  Van,  "he  has  lit  the  wrong  end  of 
the  fusee,"  and  looking  up  he  saw  Wentworth  sliding  with 
reckless  speed  down  the  rope. 

"Run, "said  Van,  as  Wentworth  touched  the  ground. 
At  the  word,  the  six  boys  leaped  from  their  covert  in  all 
directions. 

Wentworth  ran  towards  the  north,  and  was  passing  the 
corner  of  the  building,  when — crash !  he  was  hurled  vio 
lently  back  by  some  one  dashing  against  him  at  full  speed. 
A  blue  coat  and  brass  buttons  disclosed  the  infamous  cha 
racter  of  the  new  comer. 

"The  pogy,"  muttered  Wentworth,  and  stood  divided  in 
mind,  crest-tossing  Mars  urging  him  to  seek  safety  and 
glory  in  victor}*,  but  the  azure-eyed  Maid  persuading  pru 
dent  flight. 

The  next  moment  he  darted  through  the  trees  and  ran 
towards  the  Delta.  Close  upon  his  heels  trod  the  swift- 
footed  watchman,  chosen  for  his  speed.  Avarice  and  rage 
lent  him  their  aid,  but  he  followed  as  light  a  pair  of  heels 
as  ever  winged  their  way  over  the  green  at  sight  of  prowling 
proctor  or  wolfish  watch.  Wentworth's  hands  were  pressed 
against  his  chest,  his  teeth  clenched,  his  head  thrown  back. 
Disgrace  sat  behind  him  and  spurred  him  on  his  course. 
Fast  flew  his  feathered  feet  over  the  sear  grass.  The  trees 
rushed  past  him  ;  the  ground  sprang  upwards  to  meet  his 
step.  He  reached  the  spot  where  the  new  Chapel  now 
stands  ;  suddenly  he  gave  a  high  leap  in  the  air.  The 


154  Fair  Harvard. 

watchman  stopped  to  look  for  the  obstacle  and  lost  precious 
moments  in  finding  none. 

"I'll  tire  hi-m  out  yet,"  he  growled  with  an  oath,  and 
with  redoubled  rage,  pursued  the  crafty  "collegy." 

They  leaped  over  the  bars  of  the  college  yard  ;  they  ran 
across  the  Delta  ;  Wentworth  was  rapidly  nearing  the  sanc 
tuary  of  Norton's  Woods.  As  he  turned  down  Kirkland 
Street,  he  was  aware  of  a  man  walking  towards  him  :  he 
threw  his  arm  over  his  face,  and  ran  on  the  other  side  of 
the  street.  "Stop  him  !"  shouts  the  policeman,  now  some 
rods  distant,  and  Wentworth  hears  two  new  feet  in  pursuit. 

"  Podasocus  !"  he  mutters — "  Podasocus  !  the  one  dan 
gerous  tutor  to  have  upon  your  track.  A  shudder  of  de 
spair  passes  over  him,  but  he  will  die  game.  Hotter  and 
faster  comes  his  breath  ;  his  new  pursuer  is  fresh ;  he  is 
nearly  exhausted  ;  the  sweat  pours  from  his  forehead  ;  his 
face  burns  like  a  ball  of  fire  ;  his  head  grows  dizzy  with  the 
terrible  strain.  The  picture  of  his  father  and  mother  swims 
before  his  eyes — their  anguish  at  his  expulsion.  He  makes 
a  desperate  effort  ;  he  gains  a  few  feet  upon  his  enemy.  The 
few  feet  close  slowly  up  ;  he  almost  feels  the  tutor's  breath 
upon  his  neck. 

Swiftly  his  mind  explores  all  ways  of  escape. 

Suddenly  he  gathers  himself  like  a  snake  coiling  for  the 
spring.  The  tutor's  foot  strikes  the  barrier  ;  the  tutor  him 
self  is  projected  into  space.  A  thousand  stars  shed  their 
influence  over  him  for  a  moment ;  the  next  he  is  shrouded 
in  darkness. 

Wentworth,  with   a  grateful   heart,   crept  through  the 


Fair  Harvard.  155 

hedge,  which  here  bounds  the  street,  and  was  soon  lost  to 
sight. 

" '  Per  varies  casus,  per  tot  discrimina  rentm 
Tendimus  in  Latium,' " 

he  exclaimed,  a  few  minutes  later,  breaking  into  Van's 
room,  which  he  found  filled  with  his  friends,  refreshing 
their  wearied*  virtue. 

"Glad  to  see  you,  old  boy!  we  were  afraid  you  were 
caught,"  they  all  cried,  as  Wentworth  entered  the  door. 

"The  rest  of  us  are  safe,"  said  Brandreth  ;  "Rake  had  a 
close  shave  of  it,  though." 

' '  Probus  chased  me,"  broke  in  Rakeman,  "and  he  would 
have  caught  me  if  I  hadn't  tript  in  the  grass.  I  lay  per 
fectly  still,  with  my  nose  buried  in  the  ground,  and 
Probus  ran  past  me;  he  must  be  in  Roxbury  by  this 
time." 

"  I'll  tell  you  a  tale  without  any  flam." 

sang  the  rattling  Southron,  who  valued  all  things  at  a  song. 

"The  Faculty  came  out  like  a  nest  of  hornets,"  said 
Van.  ' '  They  were  wild  with  excitement.  Every  one  says 
there  hasn't  been  so  good  a  thing  tried  for  years.  But 
what's  the  matter  ?  you  look  pale. " 

Wentworth  told  his  story,  which  was  received  with  great 
applause,  and  at  its  conclusion,  all  his  friends  drank  his 
health,  standing. 

He  remained  an  hour  later  chatting  with  them,  and 
then  feeling  very  tired,  returned  to  his  room. 

"Why,  Wentworth,  what  ails  you?"  asked  his  chum, 
anxiously.  ' '  You  look  as  though  you  had  been  through 
the  wars." 


156  Fair  Harvard. 

Wentworth  repeated  his  adventure  to  Lewis,  at  which 
the  latter  laughed  at  first,  but  soon  answered  with  serious 
ness. 

"You  ought  not  to  do  this  sort  of  thing,  Wentworth. 
Every  few  days  you  frighten  me  by  some  dare-deviltry  or 
other.  If  you're  caught,  they'll  expel  you  from  college, 
and  you  can't  always  count  on  good  luck.  Besides,  you 
may  break  your  neck,  dancing  on  the  tops  of  roofs  and 
chimneys. " 

' '  I  can't  think  what  is  the  matter  with  me  to-night, "  he 
added,  after  a  short  silence;  "I  feel  out  of  spirits." 

"I  don't 'wonder  at  your  feeling  blue,  Lewis,"  said  his 
chum,  ' '  your  prayer-meeting  met  to-night,  didn't  it  ?  The 
prospect  of  going  to  heaven  with  such  scrubs  as  one  meets 
at  a  prayer-meeting,  would  make  any  one  gloomy.  Don't 
look  hurt,  old  boy,  I  only  spoke  in  jest." 

"No,  no,  Wentworth,  I'm  not  hurt,"  replied  Lewis, 
quickly  ;  "you  wrong  yourself  when  you  sneer  at  men  be 
cause  they  profess  their  belief  in  spite  of  ridicule.  Whatever 
they  may  be  in  other  respects,  for  that,  at  least,  they  deserve 
your  esteem. " 

' '  You  know,  Lewis,  I  never  misconstrued  your  manly 
assertion  of  your  convictions." 

' '  Your  only  fault  towards  me,  Wentworth,  is  too  great 
regard,"  and  Lewis  turned  his  face  towards  his  friend  with 
a  look  of  affection,  long  remembered, — "but  it  does  cut 
me  to  see  you  repress  all  expression  of  the  faith  which  I 
know  you  feel  in  your  heart.  Truth,  that  does  not  seek 
the  light,  is  but  half'trutn.  Dread  of  ridicule  is  only  a 


Fair  Harvard.  157 

refined  form  of  cowardice  and  is  as  base  a  trait What 

am  I  saying?  It  is  only  because  you  know  I  like  you  bet 
ter  than  any  one  else,  that  you  allow  me  to  be  so  unjust. " 

"  You're  not  unjust,  Lewis,  I  feel  that  I  ought  to  do  as 
you  have  done,  to  take  my  stand  before  the  world,  but  I 
hate  so  to  set  myself  up  as  a  model.  One  seems  to  claim 
to  be  better  than  other  men  if  he  makes  a  profession  of  re 
ligion.  You  are  so,  Lewis  ;  it  is  all  right  for  you/' 

"You  can't  stop  me  by  flattery,  Wentworth.  If  you 
wait  until  you  are  at  the  top  of  a  mountain  before  you  take 
the  first  step,  your  ascent  will  not  be  rapid.  If  you  wait 
until  you  are  perfect  before  you  begin  to  do  right,  you 
will  not  make  great  progress  towards  the  kingdom  of 
Heaven.  You  know  how  much  vice  there  is  here,  how 
much  drunkenness,  profanity,  and  licentiousness — not  so 
much  I  don't  mean  as  elsewhere — but  enough  to  fill  one 
with  sadness.  You  know,  too,  how  much  influence  a 
man  like  you  can  exert  in  college.  Even  though  you  are 
not  vicious  yourself,  if  you  do  not  oppose  vice  in  others 
and  unite  with  those  who  do,  your  influence  is  not  on  the 
side  of  right. " 

"I  cannot  deny  it,"  answered  Wentworth,  after  a  few 
minutes'  thought,  ; '  what  you  say  is  true.  It  is  cowardice  : 
I  will  do  what  you  wish,  old  boy,  next  Sunday,  I  promise 
it." 

Lewis  said  no  more,  for  he  was  a  strange  boy  and  knew 
when  to  advise  and  when  to  stop  advising.  Soon  he  moved 
to  the  table,  on  which  was  lying  a  somewhat  miscellaneous 
collection  of  authors,  among  whom,  if  we  remember  rightly, 


158  Fair  Harvard. 

were  Jeremy  Taylor,  Gray's  Botany,  Boccaccio,  Cook's  Che 
mical  Physics,  Rabelais,  and  George  Herbert. 

"I  often  grow  homesick  among  lifeless  books,"  Lewis 
shortly  remarked,  in  order  to  change  the  conversation. 
"Men  laugh  at  the  feeling  in  college;  it  is  so  strong, 
they  try  to  disguise  it  by  a  sneer,  as  Thackeray  does  his 
finest  feelings, — a  cowardly  fashion,  I  think." 

' '  One  needs  to  keep  the  sacred  office  of  letters  clearly 
before  him, "  he  added,  ' '  to  study  on  cheerfully  day  after 
day,  although  after  all  it  is  our  own  ignorance  that  makes  any 
thing  seem  dull  to  us.  The  wisest  men  find  nothing  stupid: 
the  commonest  word  is  to  them  the  open  sesame  to  the 
treasure-house  of  the  ages.  What  an  all-important 
part  literature  plays  in  our  life !  does  it  not  ?  Without  it 
man  is  a  point  in  the  ocean  of  eternity,  with  neither  past 
nor  future,  clipped  about  with  darkness  ;  its  aid  has  con 
quered  for  him  a  broad  island  from  the  reign  of  night,  and 
built  upon  it  a  gorgeous  temple  set  with  golden  suns 
shedding  light  and  heat.  The  Classics  are  the  Propylaea 
of  this  Temple  of  Time,  a  bulwark  against  which  the 
waves  of  oblivion  have  dashed  for  two  thousand  years,  and 
will  dash  forever  in  vain. 

"What  a  pleasant  time  we  have  had  together,  Went- 
worth  !"  he  continued  musingly.  "I  never  knew  a  term 
pass  so  quickly  before.  Yet  I  confess  I  shall  be  glad 
when  vacation  comes.  You  are  going  to  Philadelphia 
with  me  this  winter,  you  know.  Mother  will  be  so  de 
lighted  to  see  you  !"  and  the  picture  of  his  home  rose  be 
fore  the  boy's  mind. 


Fair  Harvard.  159 

"There  is  nothing,  Lewis,  I  should  like  better,"  an 
swered  Wentworth.  "But  I  must  go  to  bed,  I  feel  fear 
fully  used  up.  Hallo  !  what's  all  this  ?"  and  he  took  up  a 
solemn-looking  roll  of  papers. 

''That's  the  sermon  Plummer  preached  two  Sundays 
ago — an  old  lady  asked  me  to  borrow  it.  Do  you  remem 
ber  that  last  sentence  ?  '  My  young  friends,  if  that  truth  of 
truths  that  you  are  immortal  souls  could  fill  your  hearts 
but  for  one  moment,  then,  at  once  and  forever,  would  all 
sin  fall  from  you  like  the  scales  from  the  blind  man's  eyes. 
Then  would  you  feel  the  dignity — the  sacredness  of  this 
life,  and  make  it  the  fit  beginning  of  that  life  hereafter  of 
which  it  is  a  part.  Your  souls  would  dwell  in  your  bodies 
as  priests  in  the  temples  6f  God.  Death  you  would  look 
upon  not  as  the  king  of  terrors,  but  as  the  angel  of  life  sent 
to  lead  you  hence  into  the  celestial  kingdoms  of  our  Father 
Almighty  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. '  " 

"The  Doctor  draws  it  strong,  sometimes,  Lewis,  does 
he  not  ?"  said  Wentworth  yawning. 

"  By  the  way,  we  shall  have  some  skating  in  a  few  days, 
I  think  ;  it  is  growing  colder  again.  Good-night,  old 
boy." 


CHAPTER  XL 

"  Manibus  date  lilia  plenis." 

FEW  days  after  the  conversation  between  Lewis 
and  Wentworth,  Mrs.  Hamilton  was  seated  in 
her  small  drawing-room  in  drowsy  Philadel 
phia,  turning  over  the  leaves  of  a  book  which  it  had  grown 
too  dark  to  read. 

Lewis's  mother  was  of  middle  height,  with  clear  blue 
eyes,  light  golden  hair,  and  that  tremulous  look  about  the 
lips  which  acquaintance  with  grief  brings. 

She  was  thinking  of  the  spot  where  the  hopes  of  her  life 
were  garnered.  "It  will  be  time  to  have  a  letter  from 
Lewis  to-morrow !  How  long  the  days  seem!"  as  she  mused, 
the  bell  rang,  and  a  telegram  was  handed  her. 

"Please  come  on  as  soon  as  possible,"  she  read,  her 
anxiety  increasing  to  terror.  "Lewis  has  been  taken 
sick." 

It  happened  in  this  wise.  The  Saturday  after  Went- 
worth's  escape,  the  two  boys,  with  a  party  of  their  friends, 
went  to  Fresh  Pond  to  enjoy  the  first  skating  of  the  season, 


Fair  Harvard.  161 

and  peradventure  a  flirtation  with  some  fair-ankled  beauty 
of  breezy  Boston.  The  pond  has  long  been  famous  for 
this  double  diversion,  which  is  well  suited  to  the  tempera 
ment  of  our  New  Englanders. 

Wentworth  and  Lewis  skated  a  short  time,  and  then 
stopped  to  talk  with  Van,  a  few  rods  from  the  shore,  by 
the  hotel.  Suddenly  the  ice  gave  way,  and  they  were  all 
struggling  in  the  water.  Their  friends  formed  a  line  by 
linking  themselves  together,  but  the  ice  was  too  thin  for 
its  success.  Rakeman  then  ran  for  a  ladder  leaning 
against  a  tree  near  by,  but  its  top  was  frozen  too  hard  to  be 
moved.  He  rushed  to  a  boat-house,  a  few  feet  distant: 
here  he  found  a  long  mast,  which  he  dragged  along,  and 
pushed  over  the  ice. 

The  boys  had  now  been  some  minutes  in  the  water,  and 
were  fast  losing  their  strength.  Wentworth  and  Van  had 
each  one  arm  resting  on  the  ice,  and  with  the  other  sup 
ported  Lewis,  whose  consciousness  was  nearly  gone. 

"Hurry  up,  fellows  !  this  water  is  not  so  warm  as  it 
might  be,"  said  Van,  as  Rakeman  crept  along  the  mast. 
The  ice  creaked  and  cracked,  but  the  plucky  fellow  kept 
on. 

' '  Take  Hamilton  first, "  said  Van,  as  Rakeman  reached 
them.  Lewis,  who  was  too  benumbed  by  the  cold  to  speak, 
shook  his  head,  and  tried  to  push  himself  back,  but  Rake 
man  grasped  him  by  the  collar,  and  crying  out,  "Pull 
away,  fellows,"  was  dragged  ashore,  clinging  to  the  mast 
with  one  hand,  and  holding  Lewis  with  the  other. 


162  Fair  Harvard. 

Meanwhile,  Bowyer  had  found  a  rope  at  the  hotel,  and 
thrown  it  to  Van  and  Wentworth.  They,  less  exhausted, 
tied  it  around  their  waists,  and  were  soon  brought  to  land. 

A  good  rubbing  restored  Lewis  to  life,  and  the  three 
boys  then  put  on  the  clothes  of  their  friends,  and  started 
on  the  run  for  the  college. 

They  soon  reached  Van's  room,  and  at  once  dispatched 
a  man  laden  with  clothes,  for  their  friends  in  dishabille. 
They  then  opened  a  bottle  of  brandy,  and  drank  several 
glasses.  Wentworth  and  Lewis  staid  with  Van  the  rest 
of  the  afternoon,  and  took  supper  with  him. 

Lewis  soon  after  complained  of  feeling  tired,  and 
went  to  bed.  The  next  morning,  which  was  cloudy  and 
damp,  both  he  and  his  chum  felt  recovered  from  their 
fatigue,  and  attended  services  at  the  Chapel.  The  chapel 
had  this  peculiarity — if  what  is  shared  by  all  churches  can 
be  called  a  peculiarity — it  was  insufferably  close.  The 
architect  had,  by  some  accident,  built  a  ventilator  in  the 
ceiling,  but  the  mistake  was  fortunately  discovered  by  the 
Argus-eyed  janitor,  and  the  leak  stopped  before  more  than 
a  few  breaths  of  air  had  escaped.  Since  then,  no  mishap 
had  lessened  the  growing  sanctity  of  the  original  atmos 
phere. 

Hamilton,  who  was  still  weak  from  the  strain  of  the  day 
before,  caught  a  severe  chill,  by  going  from  the  close 
chapel  into  the  damp  air. 

He  felt  no  appetite  during  the  day,  and  in  the  evening 
complained  of  pain  and  dizziness  in  the  head. 


Fair  Harvard.  163 

The  next  morning,  Went  worth  found  his  chum  worse, 
and  went  for  the  doctor,  who  looked  serious  after  seeing 
his  patient. 

Lewis's  pulse  was  high  and  feeble,  and  his  symptoms 
threatened  fever.  Wentworth  in  alarm  sent  a  telegram  to 
his  friend's  mother,  and  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day, 
Mrs.  Hamilton  drove  up  to  the  Hall. 

As  Wentworth  opened  the  door  of  the  carriage,  she  gave 
him  that  one  agonized  glance,  that  searches  the  sentence 
of  our  destiny  in  the  eyes  of  another.  She  put  out  her 
hand  for  something  to  support  herself,  and  whispered 
"Thank  God." 

With  these  words,  she  followed  Wentworth  to  his  room. 
Lewis  had  grown  worse  during  the  night,  and  could  only 
be  kept  quiet  by  opiates.  Wentworth  had  sat  up  with 
him,  and  in  the  morning  had  been  shocked  by  the  rapid 
strides  of  the  disease.  The  boy's  eyes  were  clouded,  his 
cheeks  hollow,  and  his  clear  skin  turned  to  a  yellowish 
hue  ;  his  pulse  was  higher  than  yesterday  ;  his  young  face 
was  emaciated,  and  his  eyes  lustreless. 

Wentworth  gently  opened  the  door  for  Mrs.  Hamilton, 
and  left  her  alone  with  her  son. 

A  look  of  love  ineffable  beamed  from  the  mother's  face 
at  the  sight  of  her  child,  but  was  followed  by  an  expression 
of  unspeakable  anguish  at  the  change  which  had  come  over 
him. 

"  Oh,  my  God  !  Thou  wilt  not !"  she  cried,  in  her  agony, 
and  sinking  unconsciously  upon  her  knees  by  that  beloved 


164  Fair  Harvard. 

bedside,  "Save  his  young  life,  oh  God!"  she  prayed, 
"take  mine,  but  oh,  save  his  young  life  !" 

Suddenly  Lewis  awoke. 

"Let  me  get  up,"  he  exclaimed,  deliriously,  and  strove 
to  rise.  "I  tell  you  I  will  get  up.  Oh,  I  am  in  such  pain  ! 
If  you  only  knew  in  what  pain  I  am  !  My  head  is  bursting ! 
Wentworth,  you  go  first.  It  is  very  cold  !" 

Lewis's  mother  placed  her  hand  softly  on  the  boy's  head, 
and  kissed  his  poor  parched  lips.  ' '  Don't  you  know  me  ? 
I'm  your  mother,  Lewis  !  Oh,  my  darling  !  " 

"Yes,  I  know  you.  I'm  choking!  Let  me  get  out ; 
what  do  you  mean  by  holding  me  down  !  are  you  going 
to  leave  me  to  die  here  ?  Promise  me  you  won't  leave  me, 
Wentworth.  I  tell  you  I  can't  stay  in  the  water  !" 

The  boy  struggled,  fell  back  exhausted,  and  burst  into 
tears. 

"I  am  going  to  die  to-night !  It  is  so  cold  !  I  won't  go 
first !  I  don't  like  you  any  more,  Wentworth  ;  I  don't  like 
any  one  any  more.  Go !  leave  me — leave  me  here  alone  !" 
and  Lewis  impatiently  pushed  away  his  mother's  hand,  ten 
derly  pressed  upon  his  forehead.  The  poor  boy  ran  on 
in  this  way  a  few  moments  longer,  when  he  again  fell  into  a 
feverish  sleep. 

Thus  passed  nine  weary  days,  during  which  Lewis  hung 
between  life  and  death.  Night  after  day,  and  day  after 
night,  his  mother  watched  his  every  breath  with  a  suspense 
a  mother  alone  can  know,  sleeping  only  when  exhaustion 
closed  her  sad  eyes. 

With  the  tenth  night  the  fever  passed  away,  but  the  dan- 


Fair  Harvard.  165 

ger  had  only  changed  its  form  :  Lewis  lay  scarcely  breath 
ing,  half  sleeping,  half  waking,  lifeless  from  its  fierce  attack. 
His  skin  had  grown  deadly  pale,  and  the  veins  were  dis 
tended  on  the  lids  of  his  sunken  eyes.  Towards  noon  the 
fever  again  set  in,  but  under  the  influence  of  opiates  the 
boy  slept  restlessly  an  hour  or  more  :  suddenly  he  opened 
his  eyes. 

"Dear,  good  mother!"  he  said  in  his  natural  voice,  try 
ing  to  reach  out  his  hand.  Mrs.  Hamilton's  mind  had 
been  so  strung  with  care,  that  she  had  not  before  shed  a 
tear,  but  at  these  words  her  self-command  gave  way  and 
she  sobbed  aloud.  "Don't  cry,  mother  dearest!"  whis 
pered  Lewis,  his  old  sweet  smile  hovering  over  his  face, 
' '  I  must  have  been  a  great  care  to  you. "  Even  while  he 
spoke  his  lips  grew  purple,  and  sent  a  thrill  of  horror  over 
his  mother's  heart. 

' '  How  beautiful  you  look  to-night,  mother  !  Lean  down 
and  take  my  head  in  your  hands  and  kiss  my  eyes,  as  you 
used  when  I  was  a  boy.  Bessy,  dear,  why  have  you  been 
so  long  away?"  he  adds,  thinking  of  his  sister,  long  since 
dead.  ' '  Don't  light  the  lamps  yet,  pet,  it  is  so  pleasant  in 
the  dark — give  me  another  kiss,  mother,"  and  as  the  lips 
of  the  dying  boy  part  to  meet  his  mother's,  a  look  of  love 
hallows  his  face,  and  he  fails  asleep. 

The  childless  mother  sinks  upon  her  knees  by  the  life 
less  form  of  all  she  loved  and  lived  for  on  earth.  A  mo 
ment  ago  her  darling  was,  now  all  is  silent,  all  is  still.  But 
it  were  impious  further  to  lift  the  veil,  for  God,  himself,  is 
standing  in  the  room  by  her  side. 


166  Fair  Harvard. 

They  buried  Lewis  with  his  father  and  sister.  Went- 
worth,  as  he  listened  to  the  grand  old  service  that  has 
given  faith  to  so  many  hearts,  felt  even  then  how  beau 
tiful  is  the  death  of  the  pure  in  spirit.  In  after  days,  when 
time  had  taken  the  sting  from  his  grief,  he  learnt  the 
holy  office  of  death  to  touch  the  soul  with  a  finer  influence. 
A  friend  dying  does  not  die  but  incarnates  our  ideals,  and 
gives  them  a  human  presence.  The  radiance  of  the  Sun, 
the  painting  of  the  landscape,  the  sweet  voice  of  music,  all 
things  of  majesty  and  beauty  are  informed  with  a  more  life 
like  power  by  the  sympathy  of  grief  for  the  loss  of  those  whorr 
we  love  and  reverence.  With  what  peace  and  joy  their  faces 
shine  upon  us  from  the  clear  sky,  lit  with  heavenly  light 
from  the  bright  world  above.  ' '  I  heard  a  voice  from 
heaven,  saying  unto  me,  Write,  From  henceforth  blessed 
are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord  :  even  so  saith  the  Spirit  ; 
for  they  rest  from  their  labors. ' 

Wentworth's  room  on  his  return  to  Cambridge  looked 
gloomy  as  he  entered  it,  and  grew  gloomier  every  day. 
The  ghost  of  past  pleasure  flitted  about  it,  and  seated  itself 
in  the  vacant  chairs.  The  books,  the  old  fireplace,  the 
half  conscious  pictures  were  all  mourners  with  him  for 
their  friend. 

' '  I'll  tell  you  what,  old  boy, "  said  Van  to  him  one  day, 
"it  won't  do  for  you  to  live  in  this  tomb ;  you're  growing 
as  lean  as  a  divinity  student.  Come  and  room  with  me 
the  rest  of  the  year,  there's  a  good  fellow. " 

Wentworth  accepted  Van's  offer  with  thanks,  and  the 
next  day  moved  to  Brown's. 


Fair  Harvard.  167 

There,  through  the  rest  of  the  term,  he  sought  forget- 
fulness  in  work.  Yet  every  now  and  then,  as  the  mood 
seized  him,  he  wandered  back  to  his  former  haunts,  and 
with  a  silent  prayer  in  his  heart,  looked  again  for  the  fami 
liar  face  of  his  friend,  again  listened  for  the  sound  of  his 
sweet  voice. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"  Nee  tamcn  undique  corporea  stipata  teuentur 
omnia  natura;  namque  est  in  rebus  inane." 

"  Cum  autera  finitus  fuerit  totus  usufructus,  revertitur  scilicet  ad  proprieta" 
tern,  et  ex  eo  tempore  nudae  proprietatia  dominus  incipit  plenam  in  re  habere 
potestatern." 

,NE  forenoon  shortly  after  the  celebration  of  the 
Sophomore  class  supper,  which  was  held  at 
Point  Shirley  the  first  Friday  of  the  second 
term,  Went  worth  ran  from  the  Post-office  to  Brown's  in  a 
state  of  great  excitement  Van  was  in  his  room  reading 
one  of  M.  Gautier's  moral  tales,  and  commenting  on  the 
story  to  Rakeman,  who,  seated  nearer  the  fire,  was  enjoying 
the  ambrosial  humor  of  Henry  Fielding,  Esq. 

Van's  rooms,  which  took  up  half  the  first  floor  of  the 
building,  were  furnished  with  rich  carpets,  seductive  lounges, 
well  filled  book-cases,  and  whatever  else  was  suited  to  a 
luxurious  child  of  the  great  metropolis.  His  centre-table 
offered  you  the  works  of  Balzac,  Dumas  fils,  and  other 
novelists  ;  and  his  walls  exhibited  much  taste  in  their  col 
lection  of  pictures.  Among  them  we  recall  a  favorite 
painting,  with  many  of  Van's  friends,  by  a  famous  French 
artist,  in  which  a  frolicsome  girl,  struggling  to  check  the 


Fair  Harvard.  169 

naive  admiration  of  a  young  soldier,  discovered  no  little 
beauty.  The  most  noticeable  feature  of  the  room,  how- 
over,  was  the  main  door,  which  was  covered  over  with  slips 
of  paper.  These  were  part  of  Van's  correspondence  with 
the  College  Faculty,  through  which  he  had  been  kept  in 
formed  of  the  deductions  made  from  his  marks  for  smok 
ing,  grouping,  and  the  like,  and  of  other  matters  of  cur 
rent  interest. 

"I  thank  Heaven,  fellows!"  exclaimed  Wentworth, 
breaking  into  the  room,  "  that  I  can  now  look  on  my  fel 
low-beings  with  respect.  Two  months  ago,  wherever  I 
went  I  saw  creatures  in  the  livery  of  creditors,  who  followed 
me,  and  hung  upon  my  words  like  the  slaves  of  an  Eastern 
despot  ;  now  I  have  set  them  all  free,  and  made  men  of 
them.'"' 

"How?"  inquired  Van,  amused;  "by  an  edict  of  eman 
cipation  ?" 

"No,"  answered  Wentworth,  "I  have  bought  their  lib 
erty  with  hard  money.  I  have  just  had  a  letter  from  the 
governor ;  he  is  all  right  again,  you  know,  which  says  that 
my  last  debt  has  been  paid.  Let  me  invite  you  both  to  a 
cutlet,  some  fried  brains,  a  veal  pie,  or  anything  in  the  line  of 
the  Prodigal  Son.  Seriously,  fellows,  you  don't  know  how 
much  sweeter  it  makes  your  life,  to  have  all  men  able  to 
look  you  honestly  in  the  face  and  say — 'You  do  not  owe 
me  a  single  penny/  Down  !  down  !"  he  added,  as  a  fero 
cious  looking  dog  leaped  upon  him.  "  Down,  you  beast, 
confound  him,  whose  dog  is  this?" 

"Hue,    hue,    Romule,"   called   Van,   laughing  at   his 


170  Fair  Harvard. 

chum's  vain  efforts.  "That's  the  dog  I  spoke  to  you 
about  the  other  day.  He  arrived  this  morning  with  a  let 
ter  from  my  old  tutor.  He  is  a  splendid  classical  scholar, 
and  doesn't  know  a  single  word  of  English — a  cross  be 
tween  the  Molossian  and  Spartan  breeds. " 

"Did  you  bring  him  here  to  teach  you  Latin?"  asked 
Rakeman. 

"Not  me,  but  my. teachers.  I  tell  you  he  knows  more 
Latin,  than  any  other  professor  in  Cambridge.  Old  Rome 
herself  has  entered  into  the  belly  of  that  dog  as  the  Devil 
into  Faust's  puppy. 

"Ganni !"  Van  ordered  the  dog,  and  the  dog  begged. 

"  Arripe  !"  and  the  dog  tossed  a  piece  of  cracker  from 
his  nose  into  the  air,  and  caught  it  in  his  mouth. 
"Which  of  our  professors,"  exclaimed  Van  triumphantly, 
"  can  do  that  ?" 

"By  the  way,  Rake,"  remarked  our  hero,  after  applaud 
ing  Van's  exhibition,  ' '  I  haven't  spoken  to  you  since  the 
class-supper  ;  have  you  recovered  from  that,  entirely  ?" 

"Your  inquiry  is  equivocal,"  returned  the  Southron 
with  hauteur. 

"What  became  of  you,  yourself,  Wentworth,  about  the 
middle  of  the  supper,"  asked  Van.  ' '  You  remember  when 
Nutkins  wanted  to  fight  you,  for  knocking  a  glass  out  of 
his  hand,  and  Rake  clapped  a  punch-bowl  on  his  head  as 
a  helmet.  I  couldn't  find  you  for  an  hour  after  that ;  you 
must  have  run  away. " 

' '  I  went  to  take  a  walk  on  the  beach, "  replied  Went  • 
worth,  and  a  look  of  painful  memory  passed  over  the  face 


Fair  Harvard.  171 

of  the  boy,  in  whom  the  revelry  of  his  comrades  had 
heightened  a  sense  of  isolation,  and  excited  feelings  most 
in  contrast  with  itself. 

"You  should  have  seen  Rake's  retreat,"  said  Van 
quickly,  noticing  the  expression  of  his  friend.  "'Nut- 
kins  pursued  him  thrice  around  the  table  with  all  the  wrath 
of  an  Achilles." 

"You  should  have  seen  Sweatrame's  little  game  of  duck, 
that  was  very  humorous,"  added  Rakeman.  "As  I  was 
congratulating  myself  on  my  escape,  I  heard  a  noise  at  one 
end  of  the  room,  and  saw  Sweatrame,  with  Dummer,  and 
half  a  dozen  other  men,  throwing  plates  at  a  bottle  on  the 
table.  This  added  greatly  to  their  own  amusement,  but 
also  to  the  item  sundries  on  the  supper  bill.  I  was  on  the 
committee,  and  ran  up  to  stop  them.  As  I  reached  the 
spot,  the  polished  pate  of  a  bald-headed  waiter,  whom  fa 
tal  curiosity,  or  too  great  love  of  plates,  inspired,  lit  up  the 
scene.  Sweatrame  was  just  aiming  a  platter  at  the  bottle, 
when  the  waiter's  shining  crown  offered  a  more  inviting 
mark.  The  victim  gave  one  loud  yell,  as  the  platter  broke 
over  his  head,  and  darted  from  the  room  in  mortal  terror. 
Once  only  he  looked  back,  and  saw  Death  shadowing  him 
with  his  wings — Death!  who  spares  neither  the  'hand/ 
nor  the  'boss/ neither  the  prigging  waiter,  nor  the  lordly 
proprietor  of  a  hotel.  Your  mind  follows  him  as,  with 
the  wings  of  a  dove,  he  flies  to  his  ethereal  cot  in  the  attic. 
There  first  he  pauses,  to  breathe  a  short  prayer  for  fair 
Harvard,  and  her  free-handed  students.  Anon  a  co-waiter 
plasters  his  head,  and  whispers  words  of  hope  in  his  ear. 


172  Fair  Harvard. 

Together  they  thus  sit  trembling,  till  the  lame  night  has 
halted  off ;  our  revels  ended,  the  ghouls  descend,  dig  up 
the  corpse  of  the  jolly  supper,  and  pledge  themselves  in 
countless  heel-taps." 

"I  returned  to  the  room,"  said  Wentworth,  ''just  as 
Gowan  was  finishing  his  response  to  the  last  toast,  'the 
Union;'  did  you  hear  that,  Van?" 

"No  ;  there  was  such  a  noise  in  the  room,  then,  that  I 
only  caught  a  word  or  two,  where  I  was  seated  ;  was  it 
good  ?" 

"Very  fair.  First  he  drew  a  picture  of  the  American 
eagle,  with  its  beak  buried  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  its 
tail  shadowing  the  Pacific  coast.  'Gentlemen/  he  then 
burst  forth,  '  there  is  but  one  danger  which  threatens  our 
happy,  our  united  land,  with  discord  and  ruin.  Need  I 
name  it  ?  The  Maine  liquor  law  !  Too  well  you  know  the 
baleful  words.  Ah  !  gentlemen,  when  my  eyes  shall  be 
last  turned  to  behold  my  beloved  country,  may  they  not, 
like  the  dove  first  sent  from  the  Ark,  see  every  where  water, 
every  where  clouds.  Impious,  to  whom  the  Flood  has 
brought  no  warning !  Ho  !  waiter  !  bring  me  some  of  the 
'red  eye.'  Wine  for  Freshmen,  but  the  'red  eye'  for 
Sophs !  Saulsbury,"  he  shouts,  catching  sight  of  me,  "you're 
a  nice,  elegant,  superb,  little  white-headed  boy ;  give  a 
rouse." 

"  Gowan  is  a  comical  fellow,"  returned  Van,  "but  he  is 
a  man  of  talents,  and  will  be  one  of  our  great  political 
leaders  one  of  these  days,  I  have  no  doubt. " 

"He  can  place  himself  outside  of  more  whiskey,  in  less 


Fair  Harvard.  173 

time  than  any  man  in  the  class,  I  reckon, "  said  Rakeman. 
"Yesterday,  I  remember,  he  complained  to  me,  that  we 
were  getting  to  be  so  moral  a  class  that  a  man  was 
ashamed  to  be  seen  drunk  ;  '  it  was  not  so  under  the  old 
regime/  he  sighed." 

"  It  seems  to  me  there  is  almost  a  touch  of  coarseness 
about  our  class  suppers,"  mused  Van,  after  a  few  minutes. 
"We  ought  to  be  able  to  get  up  something  better  in  col 
lege.  By  Jove  !  I've  an  idea  :  suppose  we  have  a  Roman 
dinner." 

"Capital!"  "Bravo  !"  shouted  both  his  hearers: 

"These  rooms  are  just  the  place  for  it,"  added  Van. 
"We  can  get  six  more  good  men.  I'll  come  down  on 
my  uncle  for  the  wines ;  he's  a  Harvard  man,  and  a 
great  connoisseur." 

Wentworth  and  Rakeman  entered  heartily  into  Van's 
plan,  and  soon  the  work  of  each  of  the  three  had  been 
marked  out,  and  five  other  men  selected. 

' '  Did  your  fellows  accept  my  invitation  to-night,  Rake  ?" 
then  asked  Wentworth,  who,  on  his  return  to  prosperity,  had 
invited  his  old  club-table  to  a  supper  in  town.  "  I  tried  to 
induce  Van  to  go  with  us,  but  he  says  he  is  engaged  ;  I'll 
call  for  you  all  about  seven  at  Mrs.  Green's.  I  think  I 
shall  join  you  again  next  week,  if  you  are  willing." 

"We  could  not  possibly  think  of  it,  old  boy,"  returned 
Rakeman,  slapping  his  friend  on  the  shoulder.  "We 
shall  all  of  us  be  ready  at  seven.  Suppose  we  take  in  our 
instruments  with  us  ;  it  will  be  good  fun  to  wake  up  the 
old  town." 


174  Fair  Harvard. 

The  twelve  o'clock  bell  now  rang  and  the  boys  hurried  to 
recitation. 

About  dusk  the  same  day  in  the  drawing-room  oPone  of 
the  quiet  houses  on  Beacon  Hill,  a  bright  looking  girl  was 
laughing  and  talking  with  a  gentleman  some  ten  years  her 
senior.  The  girl,  in  whom  ruddy  health  and  delicate 
beauty  vied  for  mastery,  was  no  other  than  Miss  Campbell. 
The  gentleman  whose  manner  expressed  great  -admiration 
for  his  fair  listener,  was  Mr.  J.  Endicott  Otis,  a  man  much 
sought  by  men  for  his  personal  traits,  and  by  mothers  for 
his  great  wealth  and  alpine  social  position. 

After  some  minutes  of  casual  conversation,  Mr.  Otis 
leaned  forward  with  that  look  which  women  well  know 
precedes  the  critical  occasions  of  their  lives — observe,  my 
fair  readers,  the  delicate"  flattery  of  the  plural  number. 

The  animated  girl  at  once  became  perfectly  still ;  her 
ivory  neck,  mantled  with  crimson,  which  mounted  and 
stained  with  livelier  color  the  roses  in  her  cheeks  ;  her 
hand  trembled,  and,  to  hide  its  embarrassment,  broke  a  bud 
from  a  bouquet  on  the  table  by  her  side. 

"Miss  Campbell,"  whispered  Mr.  Otis,  bending  nearer, 
' '  it  cannot  be  a  secret  to  you  that  I  have  long  loved  you 
passionately. "  The  girl's  lips  quivered  and  she  cast  down 
her  eyes. 

"  I you  surprise  me — ,'"  she  answered  in  sweet  con 
fusion.  ' '  Believe  me,  I  never  thought I  feel  deeply 

flattered— but —  " 

"Do  not  deny  me,  Miss  Campbell — Nell  !  may  I  not 
call  you  so  ?  Tell  me  that  my  love  is  returned.  My  life" — 


Fair  Harvard.  175 

At  this  auspicious  moment  the  harmonious  voices  of  Rake- 
man's  cornet  and  Bowyer's  flute  awakened  the  sleepy  street, 
and  the  words  of  Schubert's  serenade,  gliding  from  Ayres's 
lips  into  the  room,  put  a  truce  to  further  amorous  argument. 
Mr.  Otis  started  back  and  swallowed  two — what  shall  we 
call  them  ? — ejaculations,  with  great  difficulty. 

"  They  are  serenading  me — how  charming  !  "  exclaimed 
Miss  Campbell,  after  listening  a  minute.  "They  must  be 
college  boys  :  I  wonder  who  they  are  ? " 

Mr.  Otis  was  himself  a  graduate  of  Harvard,  but  had  he 
then  heard  that  the  college  with  all  its  students  had  been 
buried  in  the  ocean,  he  would  have  received  the  news — 
dare  we  record  it — with  resignation.  So  deeply  is  the  New 
England  Brahmin  leavened  with  all  Christian  virtues. 

Scarcely  had  Ayres  finished  singing,  when  Rakeman  be 
gan  that  rattling  ballad,  which  has  always  been  justly  a 
favorite  at  Harvard. 

"  It  was  a  tall  young  oysterman  lived  by  the  river  side — " 

Rakeman  was  in  good  form,  and  the  winged  words  of 
this  Sapphic  song  flew  right  and  left  with  brilliant  effect. 

"I  must  see  who  it  is  !"  cried  Miss  Campbell,  with  that 
fine  spirit  of  inquiry  which  marks  her  sex  ;  and  with  these 
words,  the  arch  beauty  jumped  from  her  seat,  opened  the 
folding  windows,  and  stept  softly  into  the  balcony,  which 
was  closely  covered  with  woodbine. 

"You  will  catch  cold,  I  fear,  let  me  put  on  your  shawl/' 
urged  Mr.  Otis,  with  something  too  much  of  fatherly  con 
cern  in  his  voice. 


176  Fair  Harvard. 

"No,  I  thank  you,''  replied  Miss  Campbell,  and  leaning 
forward  she  peeped  through  the  leaves. 

As  Rakeman  finished  his  tearful  strain,  a  slight  rustling 
caught  Wentworth's  ear,  and  looking  up  he  saw  the  glim 
mer  of  the  girl's  light  dress,  and  her  coquettish  face  shin 
ing  through  its  reluctant  veil. 

' '  For  heaven's  sake,  don't  sing  any  of  your  negro  mel 
odies,"  he  whispered  to  his  friend,  who  was  tuning  his 
throat  for  a  soft  lay  of  the  South.  "  Ayres,  sing  what  you 
sang  the  other  night ;  don't  you  remember  it  ?  about  the 
pale  moon,  sweet  face,  windows,  and  all  that  sort  of.thing." 

And  without  further  entreaty,  Robin  began  that  lovely 
song, 

"  When  the  pale,  pale  moon  arose  last  night." 

"  How  exquisite  !  did  you  ever  hear  anything  prettier, 
Mr.  Otis?''  said  Miss  Campbell,  and  she  clapped  her 
hands  in  enthusiasm. 

"Never,"  answered  her  admirer,  though  from  his  man 
ner,  one  would  hardly  have  guessed  it. 

The  boys  sang  a  few  more  songs,  and  then  mounted 
their  tilburies  to  drive  away.  Wentworth,  however,  re 
mained  behind  a  moment,  and  glanced  admiringly  at  the 
sunny-eyed  face  above  him  for  recognition.  Miss  Camp 
bell's  hand  had  stolen  through  the  foliage,  and  was  resting 
on  the  railing  of  the  balcony,  holding  the  rose-bud  she  had 
just  taken  from  the  table.  As  she  bowed  to  our  hero, 
through  some  accident  unseen  by  Mr.  Otis,  the  rose 
dropt  from  her  hand.  Wentworth  caught  it,  pressed  it  to 
his  lips,  and  joined  Rakeman  in  his  tilbury. 


Fair  Harvard.  177 

When  Mr.  Otis  ordered  a  bouquet  to  be  sent  to  Miss 
Campbell  that  morning,  little  did  he  imagine  the  base  use 
to  which  one  of  its  fair  flowers  would  be  put  by  its  fairer 
recipient.  So  dangerous  is  it  to  have  any  dealings  with  the 
fickle  sex. 

Did  Wentworth  preserve  this  flower  for  long  months  in 
a  secret  drawer,  to  be  gazed  at  with  fond  memories  ?  Alas, 
no.  Fiction  would  have  so  represented  it,  but  plain  his 
tory  must  set  down  the  fact.  Ayres  would  have  done  so. 

The  warbler  had  a  drawer  consecrated  to  ribbons,  fans,  a 
slipper  or  two,  and  a  Gehenna  of  dead  flowers,  over  which, 
after  a  pint  of  claret,  he  would  sigh  by  hours  together. 
But  Wentworth  placed  the  rose  in  his  pocket,  and  in  the 
evening,  finding  it  faded,  threw  it  away. 

The  boys  drove  off ;  Miss  Campbell  returned  to  her  seat, 
and  Mr.  Otis  to  his  suit,  though  with  less  heart.  ' '  Do 
not,"  he  said  at  length,  "do  not  Miss  Campbell  forbid  my 
hoping  in  time  to  win  your  love/' 

' '  You  embarrass — there  is  no  one,  believe  me,  Mr. 
Otis, — "  and  the  girl's  tempting  lips  again  trembled,  "there 
is  no  one  whom  I  respect  more.  But  I — I  am  not  in  love 
with  you  :  I  ought  to  tell  you  the  truth. " 

"  Can  I  ask,  Miss  Campbell,  if  your  affections  are  en 
gaged?" 

"Certainly,  you  may  :  I  should  have  told  you  had  that 
been  the  cause." 

' '  I  may  then  hope  ?" 

"No,  no,  I  don't  mean  that,"  and  Miss  Campbell  grew 
more  confused,  and  looked  prettier  than  ever;  "I — do 


178  Fair  Harvard. 

let  me — I  must  be  frank  with  you,  Mr.  Otis.  I  am  not 
in  love  with  you,  and  I  fear — I  mean  I  feel  that  I  never 
can  be." 

Mr.  Otis  rose,  took  Miss  Campbell's  hand,  kissed  it  pas 
sionately,  and  left  the  room. 

What  could  have  been  the  reason  that  induced  Miss 
Campbell  to  refuse  Mr.  Otis,  to  whose  attentions  she  had 
not,  perhaps,  been  altogether  averse?  Was  it  that  he 
seemed  older  than  before,  or  could  it  have  been  the  hand 
some  face  of  the  boy  who  had  piqued  her  vanity  by  his 
neglect,  or  that  a  victory  won  is  forgotten,  and  she  already 
sighed  for  new  worlds  to  conquer?  Who,  through  the 
mazy  labyrinth  of  a  woman's  mind,  can  trace  the  thread 
of  causation  ?  We,  humble  chroniclers,  merely  write 
down  the  results,  nor  stop  to  search  the  cause,  or  point  the 
moral. 

"  Why,  Wentworth,"  cried  Van  in  astonishment,  on  en 
tering  their  rooms  about  three  o'clock  the  same  night, 
"  what  are  you  about  ?" 

Wentworth  was  seated  at  the  table,  his  coat  upon  the 
sofa,  his  collar  on  a  chair,  and  most  of  the  rest  of  his  dress 
in  different  parts  of  the  room.  Before  him  lay  Tennyson, 
Coleridge,  Spenser,  and  other  poets  without  number.  Our 
hero  himself  was  wild  with  thought,  his  eyes  rolling,  his 
hair  hurled  back  from  his  brow ;  one  hand  rested  on  the 
table,  the  other  warned  back  his  friend. 

"Hurrah,  Van  !"  he  at  length  shouted,  "  it  is  done  ;  bliss 
rhymes  with  kiss,  dies  rhymes  with  eyes,"  and  Wentworth 


Fair  Harvard.  179 

handed  Van  a  sheet  of  paper,  on  which  four  stanzas  were 
written. 

"By  Jove,  they're  capital!"  responded  Van,  glancing 
over  them,  "just  the  thing  for  my  Institute  paper  to-mor 
row  :  I'm  much  obliged  to  you. " 

"Institute  paper!"  cried  Wentworth  in  a  rage,  "do 
you  suppose  I  would  sit  up  all  night  to  write  verses  for  the 
Institute  ;  do  you  think  I  am  mad  ?" 

"Since  you  ask  me,  old  boy,"  returned  Van,  "I  con 
fess  I  never  ^saw  any  good  reason  to  doubt  it.  So  it's  a 
real  sketch,  is  it  ?  Well,  I  wish  you  luck.  My  night  has 
been  better  spent  than  in  rhyming  about  a  girl  in  a  balcony. 
I  have  been  giving  a  lesson  in  disinterested  philanthropy." 

' '  That's  a  new  line  for  you,  Van.  What  have  you  been 
doing?" 

' '  We  have  been  making  a  night  of  it,  Brandreth,  Sea 
born,  and  I.  We  started  for  Boston  after  recitation,  and 
took  dinner  at  Destre's — by  the  way  he  is  just  the  man  for 
our  Roman  dinner,  he  says  he  will  get  it  up  on  'tick/ 
After  dinner  we  went  to  Parker's  to  have  a  game  of  billiards, 
and  then  dropt  into  the  theatre  to  see  the  ballet.  That 
troupe  you  saw  in  New  York  last  winter  are  here  now. 
You  remember  the  premiere  Tiptonini,  what  a  ravishing 
'limb  !'  as  you  Bostonians  say.  We  went  behind  the  scenes 
and  I  introduced  the  fellows  to  her.  After  the  second 
dance  we  dragged  Brandreth  away,  and  drove  to  the  Na 
tional  to  see  a  sparring  match  between  Heenan  and  the 
Bowery  Pet.  We  stayed  till  they  broke  up,  and  about  eleven 
walked  to  the  Revere  House,  where  we  ordered  a  cham- 


180  Fair  Harvard. 

pagne  supper.  When  we  left  the  hotel  the  last  car  had 
gone  long  ago,  and  we  found  ourselves  caught  in  a  heavy 
rain.  At  length  we  routed  out  a  hackman,  who  was  will 
ing  to  drive  us,  and  all  tumbled  into  the  coach."  Here  Van 
became  convulsed  with  laughter. 

' '  As  long  as  I  can  remember, "  growled  Wentworth, 
still  sore  from  his  friend's  cruelty  to  his  verses,  ' '  I  never 
heard  anything  to  compare  with  this  story  of  a  night  in 
town,  though  I  have  been  all  my  life  in  the  habit  of  hear 
ing  similar  narratives  !  Why  don't  you  publish  it  ?  You 
could  make  your  fortune. " 

"Stop  !  stop  !  wait  till  I  finish,"  cried  Van. 

"We  were  some  distance  past  the  bridge,  when  the 
thought  struck  me  that  the  gentleman  on  the  box  might  be 
driving  us,  not  for  pleasure,  but  from  some  base  motive.  I 
had  spent  my  last  penny ;  Brandreth  and  Seaborn  had 
together  but  twenty-five  cents.  Swiftly  the  hack  wheeled 
over  the  road  ;  nearer  drew  the  dread  moment  of  liquida 
tion.  The  position  was  indeed  critical  ;  some  Napoleonic 
stroke  was  needed  ;  the  Time  called  for  the  Man,  and  the 
Man  responded  to  the  Time. 

"The  hack  had  reached  Quincy  Street,  and  was  driving 
over  the  soft  ground,  when  the  door  gently  opened  and  dis 
covered  the  dark  form  of  Brandreth  gliding  to  the  ground  ; 
him  followed  Seaborn,  and  lastly  appeared  the  god-like 
proportions  of  Van  Courtland. 

"  The  innocent  hackman  drove  on  through  the  driving 
rain,  and  left  us  masters  of  the  situation. 

"When  the  driver  reached  the  centre  of  Harvard  Square, 


Fair  Harvard.  181 

he  stopped  his  coach  and  waited  a  moment  for  us  to  get 
out.  Then,  whistling  a  merry  tune,  and  thanking  the 
good  God,  maker  of  night-wandering  Harvard  spendthrifts, 
he  dismounted,  opened  the  door,  touched  his  hat  politely, 
and  was  brought  face  to  face  with  the  great  Void. 

Then,  slowly,  the  awfulness  of  the  occasion  forced  itself 
upon  him ;  then  slowly  he  realized  the  absolute  emptiness 
of  all  things.  Unable  at  first  to  breathe  in  that  fine  atmos 
phere,  he  staggered  and  supported  himself  upon  a  wheel  of 
the  coach.  Recovering  his  strength,  he  searched  through 
the  hack,  under  the  seats,  behind  the  cushions,  in  every 
corner,  and  found  three  cigar  stumps.  He  looked  up  North 
Avenue  :  not  a  step  echoed  along  its  peaceful  sidewalks  ;  he 
gazed  down  Main  Street  :  it  was  buried  in  happy  slumber. 
The  feelings  of  the  hackman  lay  too  deep  for  oaths ;  in 
silence  he  mounted  his  box,  turned  his  horses'  heads,  and 
drove  towards  the  city,  a  sadder  and  a  wiser  man.  Soon 
he  whipped  his  horses  madly,  if  possible  to  catch  some 
belated  train,  and  rattraper  the  coin  his  carelessness  had 
squandered. ;' 

"All  persons  who  come  to  Harvard  gain  wisdom,"  said 
Wentworth,  laughing  ;  "anything  else  it  is  a  sin  to  attempt 
here.  Is  that  what  you  call  giving  lessons  in  philanthro 
py  ?  I  hate  to  think  how  eager  that  hackman  will  be  to 
drive  the  next  student  that  asks  him. '' 

"It  sets  my  teeth  on  edge  to  think  how  little  oil  he  will 
put  on  the  doors  of  his  coach  after  this/'  replied  Van,  gap 
ing.  "  Come,  we  must  go  to  bed,  it  'is  past  four  o'clock. 


CHAPTER  XIII.* 

'  Sod  nee  post  primiim  legat  hsec  summumve  trientem." 

RRAH  !  be  gorra  !  D'ye  mind  the  binches,  and 
the  bot,  and  the  plasther  of  parish  images,  and 
the  tobaccy  boxes,  (and  if  I  only  had  me 
dudeen  to  suck  meself !)  and  this  saucy  phanix,  and  this 
villainous  baste  !  Sure  it's  a  strange  thing  is  larnin." 

Thus,  about  the  ninth  hour  of  a  pleasant  summer's  day, 
in  his  rude  vernacular,  muttered  the  ostiarius  of  Van  Court- 
land.  This  door-keeper,  who,  on  account  of  his  immense 
size,  was  nicknamed  the  Infant,  had  been  captured  several 
years  since,  in  a  barbarous  island,  and  sold  as  a  slave. 
His  former  master  had  employed  him  as  porter  and  private 
watchman,  but  Van  Courtland,  on  purchasing  him,  had 
appointed  him  to  his  present  position. 

The  Infant,  as  he  spoke,  lazily  rattled  his  chains,  and 
shook  his  virga  or  rod  of  office  at  the  dog,  Romulus,  who 
was  fastened  near  him,  with  the  warning  words,  "CAVE 
CANEM, "  written  in  capital  letters  above  his  head. 

While  thus  diverting  himself,  his  ear  caught  the  sound 

(*  Published  by  permission  from  the  MS.  of  the  M.  &  M.  Club.) 


Fair  Harvard.  183 

of  guests,  whom  his  master  had  that  day  invited  to  dine, 
approaching  the  house. 

A  moment  later,  eight  stalwart  slaves  halted  before  the 
door,  bearing  a  covered  lectica,  from  which  Rakeman  dis 
mounted.  Close  behind  him  was  Sweatrame  in  a  covinus 
followed  by  a  basterna  on  which  Ayres  -was  seated,  and  a 
rheda  containing  Bowyer,  and  one  Pippins,  a  shade  from 
breezy  Boston. 

The  guests,  as  they  passed  through  the  door,  examined 
with  interest  a  new  mosaic  salve,  worked  upon  the  threshold, 
and  a  parrot  of  rare  beauty  in  a  cage  above  their  heads, 
that  saluted  them  with  the  same  word  of  welcome. 

After  entering  the  atrium,  they  again  paused,  to  study 
the  frescoes  upon  its  walls,  which  represented  Prome 
theus  Bound,  the  Rescue  of  Andromeda,  the  famous 
Plea  of  Hyperides,  and  other  scenes  of  beauty  and  gran 
deur. 

The  shade,  Pippins,  who  was  a  stranger,  lingered  a  few 
minutes  over  the  beautiful  symbolical  marriage  bed,  which 
stood  opposite  the  door,  and  then  read,  with  awe,  the  titles 
of  honor,  underneath  the  long  row  of  imagines,  which, 
crowned  with  fresh  laurel,  attested  the  dignity  of  the  house 
of  Van  Courtland. 

He  was  interrupted  by  an  usher,  who  led  him  and  his 
friends  through  the  alee  of  the  atrium  into  the  cavum 
cedium,  and  turning  to  the  right  of  the  impluvium,  con 
ducted  them  to  the  door  of  a  small  triclinium,  built  facing 
the  west,  to  command  a  view  of  the  sunset.  Upon  this 
was  fastened  a  door-stud  with  the  following  inscription — • 


184  Fair  Harvard. 

"  Worthy  guests,  my  name's  the  Crumb 
But  I  give  you  large  welcome  ; 
Gently  on  your  couch  repose, 
Let  your  locks  with  balsam  shine, 
Scatter  with  free  hand  the  rose, 
Crown  the  brimming  cup  with  wine  ; 
Drink  !  while  age  and  care  delay — 
Drink !  and  seize  youth's  golden  day." 

"Enter  with  your  right  foot  foremost !"  cried  a  slave,  sta 
tioned  at  the  door  for  the  purpose,  as  Rakeman,  after  read 
ing  the  inscription,  led  the  way  into  the  dining-room. 

"  Hail !  Rakeman  !"  exclaimed  Van  Courtland,  coming 
forward,  and  saluting  each  of  his  guests  with  a  kiss. 
"  Hayward  and  Dummer,  as  you  see,  have  already  arrived, 
and  we  have  now  made  up  the  full  number  of  the  Muses. 
How  well  your  violet-colored  synthesis  becomes  you,  Pip 
pins,"  he  added  turning  to  the  latter,  "'though  I  prefer 
scarlet  for  myself.  Dinner  will  be  served  in  a  few  minutes  ; 
till  then,  I  hope  you  can  find  something  with  which  to 
amuse  yourselves." 

The  guests  were  glad  of  delay,  which  gave  them  time 
to  examine  the  contents  of  the  triclinium, 

The  dinner-table  was  made  of  rare  wood,  beautifully 
mottled,  and  the  three  couches  around  it  were  ornamented 
with  purple  coverings,  and  divided  by  cushions  of  the  same 
color. 

The  pictures  upon  the  walls,  though  different  in  charac 
ter,  rivalled  those  of  the  atrium  in  genius.  Among  them 
you  saw  Ajax  slaughtering  the  Trojan  sheep,  lo  metamor 
phosed  into  a  heifer,  Jupiter  changed  into  a  bull,'  the  com 
panions  of  Ulysses  transformed  into  swine,  Actaeon  pursued 
by  his  hounds,  ^Egle  binding  drunken  Silenus  with  his 


Fair  Harvard.  185 

own  garlands,  and  Pelias  boiling  in  the  sterile  pot,  all  the 
work  of  artists  of  the  very  first  rank. 

The  pictures  were,  however,  dwarfed  by  the  antiquities 
displayed  upon  the  side  tables. 

Among  the  rarities  there  exhibited,  you  beheld  almost 
with  incredulity,  the  tortoise  which  killed  ^Eschylus,  the 
tortoise  of  Mercury,  the  grape-stone  that  choked  Anac- 
reon,  the  dagger  with  which  Dido  stabbed  herself,  the 
pearl  of  Cleopatra,  condensed  with  difficulty,  the  horn  of 
Amalthea,  a  horn  of  Marcus  Aurelius,  the  goblet  of 
Nestor,  the  bag  of  /Eolus,  the  ring  of  Gyges,  the  helmet 
of  Pluto,  the  cup  of  Circe,  a  stone  of  Deucalion,  the  stone 
of  Sisyphus,  the  apple  of  Paris,  the  apple  of  Atalanta,  the 
girdle  of  Venus,  the  thread  of  Ariadne,  a  labor  of  Her 
cules,  a  labor  of  Leda,  the  spindle  of  Clotho,  the  scissors 
of  Atropos,  a  leaf  from  the  Cumaean  Sibyl,  the  kettle  of 
Dodona,  the  sandal  of  Empedocles  recently  discovered, 
some  fleas  found  on  the  body  of  Jason,  after  his  death,  a 
bean,  the  grandsire  of  Pythagoras,  the  gad-fly  that  pursued 
lo,  a  chaste  piece,  the  sword  of  Ulysses,  marked  "  U. 
S./'  the  lost  books  of  Livy,  the  eye  of  Polyphemus,  re 
stored,  a  primordial  atom,  a  hair  of  Berenice,  a  hair  of  Al- 
cibiades'  dog,  a  serpent  from  the  head  of  Medusa,  still  liv 
ing,  one  of  Socrates'  demons,  stuffed,  a  smile  of  Democri- 
tus,  preserved  in  a  bottle  of  Chian  wine,  a  tear  of  Heraclei- 
tus,  changed  into  amber,  the  golden  mean  of  Epicurus, 
one  of  Aristotle's  shoes,  found  near  Athens,  a  hoop  of  Diog 
enes'  tub — but  perhaps  the  gem  of  all  the  curiosities, 
was  one  of  Plato's  divine  ideas,  sealed  in  a  transparent 


186  Fair  Harvard. 

glass  bottle.  Over  this  treasure  the  college  professor 
of  metaphysics  often  pored  for  days  together,  and  grew 
wiser  and  better  the  more  he  studied  its  mysterious 
qualities. 

The  host,  who  had  stepped  from  the  room,  now  returned 
and  conducted  his  guests  to  their  couches.  Sweatrame 
was  given  the  highest  place  upon  the  highest  couch,  with 
Dummer  and  Hay  ward  below  him.  With  Bowyer,  and  the 
shade  Pippins.  Rakeman  occupied  the  middle  couch. 
Rakeman,  himself,  had  the  seat  of  honor,  next  the  host, 
who  reclined  upon  the  lowest  couch,  with  Saulsbury  and 
the  scurra  Ayres,  an  object  of  humor  to  the  rest  of  the  ta 
ble,  for  his  power  of  devouring  whole  loaves  at  a  single 
mouthful. 

As  soon  as  the  guests  had  taken  their  places,  slaves  re 
moved  their  sandals,  and  poured  water,  cooled  with  snow, 
over  their  hands  and  feet.  While  they  were  enjoying  this 
agreeable  service,  a  boy  with  a  look  of  terror  ran  into  the 
room,  and  throwing  himself  at  their  feet,  implored  them  to 
intercede  for  him  with  his  master. 

''What  was  your  offence?"  inquired  Rakeman,  kindly. 

"  My  master  told  me  to  take  his  old  toga  ^  a  present" — 
replied  the  slave,  "and  I  sold  his  new  one  by  mistake." 

I^akeman  and  his  friends  joined  in  begging  their  host  to 
pardon  so  natural  an  error. 

"It  is  the  impudence  of  the  jail-bird,  not  the  loss 
of  the  toga  that  provokes  me,"  returned  Van  Courtland. 
"The  toga,  to  be  sure,  was  of  the  finest  Milesian  wool, 
but  it  had  been  worn  once,  and  had  a  spot  upon  the 


Fair  Harvard.  187 

inside.  What  matters  it,  however !  The  boy  is  yours  ; 
you  shall  cast  lots  for  him  at  the  comissatio.  My 
stomach  barks  with  hunger,  and  my  teeth  are  so  well 
shod,  that  they  would  win  a  prize  in  a  race  course." 

As  Van  Courtland  finished  speaking,  he  clapped  his 
hands,  and  a  band  in  a  corner  of  the  room  commenced 
playing  a  stirring  air. 

At  this  signal,  a  slave  entered  bearing  the  gustatorium 
which  he  placed  upon  the  table.  In  the  centre  of  this  tray, 
the  dishes  of  which  showed  no  little  ingenuity,  was  a  large 
platter,  on  which  stood  a  miniature  market-stall.  Within 
the  stall  appeared  an  old  woman  selling  various  kinds  of 
vegetables.  Before  her  lay  baskets  of  radishes,  asparagus, 
carrots,  sliced  onions,  and  beets,  dwarf  lettuce,  noble-heart 
ed  cabbages,  hiccoughing  mint,  and  other  spurs  to  the 
weary  stomach.  Upon  the  floor  of  the  stall  were  groups  of 
three  dormice,  (the  parasites  of  Diogenes, )  sprinkled  with 
honey  and  pepper  ;  one,  lying  upon  his  back,  was  holding 
an  egg  in  his  feet,  while  two  accomplices  were  dragging 
away  their  comrade  with  his  prize,  by  the  tail. 

In  a  second  dish  was  a  sow  made  of  paste,  wallowing  in 
a  trough  filled  with  delicious  sauce,  the  ingredients  of 
which  were  oil,  pepper,  vinegar,  native  wine,  and  the 
juices  of  sea-fish.  The  breasts  of  the  sow,  which  were-real, 
and  as  numerous  as  those  of  Diana  of  Ephesus,  had  been 
cooked  while  unsuckled,  and  the  sow  herself  was  gazing, 
lost  in  wonder,  at  a  boy  who  was  pulling  from  her  mouth 
a  string  of  dainty  sausages. 

The  appearance  of  a  third  dish,  which  bore  an  olive  tree, 


188  Fair  Harvard. 

was  even  more  singular.  The  upper  branches  of  this  tree 
were  thickly  hung  with  light  and  dark  olives,  the  pips  of 
which  had  been  removed  and  replaced  by  anchovy  paste, 
while  its  lower  branches  bore  snails,  muscles,  oysters, 
scollops,  and  a  variety  of  small  fish. 

"This  olive  tree,"  said  Van  Courtland,  in  answer  to  an 
inquiry  from  Pippins  as  to  the  cause  of  so  strange  a  crop, 
' '  was  in  existence  as  far  back  as  the  flood  of  Pyrrha, 

'  Piscium  et  summa  genus  hsesit  ulmo,' 

at  which  time  it  was  growing  upon  the  summit  of  a  high 
hill.  The  waters  of  the  flood  reached  above  the  lower 
branches  of  the  tree  half-way  to  its  top,  and  it  has  ever  since 
borne  olives  upon  its  upper  branches,  and  shell  and  other 
fish  upon  its  lower. 

The  guests  were  amused  at  their  host's  explanation  of  the 
miracle,  and  helped  themselves  to  their  choice  of  the  whets 
to  the  appetite  before  them,  while  two  slaves  offered  them 
mulsum  made  of  honey  and  old  wines. 

"The  Egyptians  eat  cabbage  before  their  other  food," 
remarked  Hayward,  helping  himself  to  some  of  that  dish. 
' '  Nothing  except  sudden  grief  is  a  better  preventive  to 
drunkenness.  The  vine,  it  is  said  by  Theophrastus,  runs 
away  at  the  smell  of  the  cabbage/1 

"  The  vine,''  said  Rakeman,  "  is  not  the  only  thing  that 
flies  from  the  smell  of  boiled  cabbage.  I  take  an  onion  in 
self-defence,  as  you  work  off  one  wine  by  another." 

"Yesterday,"  said  Pippins,  extracting  an  oyster  from  its 
shell  with  his  cochlear,  "I  saw  a  hardy  Westerner,  who 
was  reclining  next  me  at  a  dinner  party,  served  for  the  first 


Fair  Harvard.  189 

time  with  a  dish  of  oysters  upon  the  half-shell.  He  was 
very  hungry  and  at  once  clapped  one,  shell  and  all,  into 
his  mouth,  and  began  to  masticate  it.  Soon  detecting  a 
certain  grittiness  in  the  delicacy,  '  What  coarse  food  you  eat 
here/  he  whispered  to  me,  'I  will  not  be  so  effeminate  as 
to  spit  this  one  out,  but  I  trust  I  shall  never  taste  a  second." 

After  a  few  minutes'  further  conversation,  the  guests  ex 
pressed  themselves  satisfied,  and  the  gustatorium,  at  a  sign 
from  the  band,  was  quickly  removed.  Two  crisp-haired 
Ethiopians  then  entered,  one  of  whom  wiped  the  table 
with  a  purple  cloth  and  picked  up  the  crumbs,  and  what 
ever  might  offend  the  guests,  while  the  other  offered  them 
water  for  their  hands. 

While  they  were  thus  engaged,  cup-bearers  brought  into 
the   room  amphora    made    of   green  glass,    and  carefully 
sealed  with  gypsum.     The  necks  of  these  had  attached  to 
them  labels  which  bore  the  following  marks  : 
"  Fakrnum.  C.  Julio  Ccesare.  IV" 
"Ccecubum.  Cn.  Pompeio.  III." 

The  guests  read  the  inscriptions,  and  the  slaves  then 
opened  the  vessels  and  poured  the  wine  through  a  strainer 
filled  with  snow  into  the  crater. 

"We  will  drink  Scythian  draughts  to-night,"  said  the 
host,  as  the  slaves  passed  glasses  around  the  table.  ' '  This 
is  sweet  Falernian ;  I  warrant  it  pure.  The  grapes  were 
pressed  when  the  south-wind  blew  through  the  vineyard, 
which  you  know  makes  wine  mellow  and  wild  boars 
tender.  Boy  !  "  he  then  commanded  a  slave,  "fill  my  cup 
with  wine  cyathi  oft.  Caecuban." 


190  Fair  Harvard. 

The  slave  hastened  to  obey  the  order  of  his  master  and 
to  pass  him  a  cup,  which  was  curiously  fashioned  out  of  a 
human  skull. 

"Good  luck  to  you!  good  luck  to  us  !  good  luck  to 
our  mistresses!"  cried  the  host,  "may  this  draught,  my 
friends,  take  away  all  restraint !"  and  tasting  the  cup  he 
passed  it  to  Rakeman. 

"So  may  the  Gods  love  me!''  exclaimed  the  latter, 
handing  the  cup  to  his  neighbor.  "This  Caecuban  has  a 
drop  of  the  divine  spirit  in  it. " 

"I  feel  obliged,  by  long  custom,"  said  Hayward,  "to 
mix  water  with  my  wine.  When  thus  taken,  it  is  more 
healthy.  Indeed,  certain  philosophers  have  held  that  water, 
even  when  pure,  is  nutritious,  since  grasshoppers  live  upon 
that  alone." 

"It  affects  grasshoppers  more  favorably  than -men,"  re 
joined  Rakeman  ;  "the  one  it  makes  merry,  the  other 
morose. " 

"How  old  do  you  say  this  Caecuban  is?"  inquired  the 
scurra  Ayres,  looking  ruefully  at  the  small  quantity  remain 
ing  in  the  cup.  "Many  centuries?  May  I  perish,  if  it  is 
not  very  little  for  its  years." 

"You  speak  like,  a  cask  that  thinks  only  of  how  much  it 
can  hold,"  responded  the  host  with  a  laugh,  and  bade  a 
boy  fill  the  cup  anew. 

He  then  again  clapped  his  hands,  at  which  a  stalwart 
slave  entered  bearing  a  repositorium  containing  the  first 
regular  course  of  the  ccena.  Within  this  tray  in  their  sev 
eral  dishes  were  capons,  stuffed  hares,  a  long-breasted  lob- 


Fair  Harvard.  191 

ster,  hedged  about  with  asparagus,  and  delicious  eels 
with  shrimps  swimming  in  their  sauce. 

"  What  a  tail  your  lobster  turns  up  at  us  all/'  observed 
Saulsbury  as  the  slave  deposited  his  load  upon  the  table. 
"You,  Van  Courtland,  who  hang  the  world  upon  your  nose, 
do  you  not  wish  you  could  give  that  as  contemptuous  a 
curve. " 

"By  Ceres!"  cried  Ayres,  enthusiastic  at  the  sight  of 
food,  ' '  this  is  a  dinner  fit  for  the  Salii.  What  a  godlike 
eel !  One  would  die  content  after  tasting  it.  How  easily 
could  I  win  any  old  woman,  by  the  present  of  such  a 
treasure,  to  write  me  down  sole  heir  !" 

While  Ayres  was  talking,  the  structor,  keeping  time  to 
the  music  with  many  artistic  flourishes  of  hand  and  foot, 
had  deftly  carved  up  the  dishes. 

' '  Do  not, "  the  host  warned  his  guests,  as  the  slaves 
passed  round  the  different  sorts  of  food,  "waste  your  forces 
upon  the  outworks ;"  and,  after  no  very  long  interval,  he 
again  gave  a  signal  to  the  structor,  at  which  the  main  dish 
of  the  feast,  a  huge  wild  boar,  made  its  appearance  upon 
the  table. 

The  band  then  sounded  a  charge,  and  a  slave,  dressed 
after  the  fashion  of  auburn-haired  Meleager,  rushed  into 
the  room  with  a  spear,  which  he  thrust  into  the  side  of  the 
boar.  The  stroke  discovered  numerous  bodies  of  men  and 
dogs  made  of  rich  paste,  which,  with  others,  impaled  upon 
the  tusks  of  the  monster,  or  lying  by  its  side,  were  given  to 
the  guests  to  carry  away  as  apophoreta. 


192  Fair  Harvard. 

"That  was  a  terrible  contest,"  mused  Van  Courtland,  as 
the  boar  divided  itself  under  the  rapid  knife  of  the  carver. 
' '  had  Ayres  been  there  he  would  have  ended  it  by  devour 
ing  the  creature,  tusks  and  all." 

"Milo,"  observed  Rakeman,  as  Ayres  helped  himself 
to  no  small  portion  of  the  dish,  "is  said  to  have  devoured 
a  whole  ox  at  a  single  meal  :  to  you,  Ayres,  he  must  ap 
pear  to  have  been  a  poor  starveling.'' 

"Did  you  never,  Ayres,"  asked  Saulsbury,  pursuing  the 
pregnant  theme,  "hear  of  Gambles,  king  of  the  Lydians? 
You  would  have  found  in  him  no  mean  competitor. 
Though  a  great  epicure,  he  was  also  like  yourself  an  ad 
mirer  of  women.  These  two  passions  led  him  one  day 
after  a  generous  dinner,  to  devour  his  wife  for  dessert. 
Her  hand  was  seen  by  a  friend  the  next  morning  protrud 
ing  from  his  mouth,  and  Gambles,  who  was  over  sensitive, 
hanged  himself  by  reason  of  the  disparaging  reports  to 
which  the  affair  gave  rise. 

"Gambles,"  he  added,  "was  less  lucky  than  Dummer, 
when  he  came  to  college,  though  he  only  escaped  hanging 
by  a  thread. " 

The  rest  of  the  students,  at  this,  turned  towards  Dum 
mer,  who  arose  and  would  have  left  the  room  in  anger. 

"  Do  tell  Pippins  of  your  humorous  adventure  ;  that's  a 
good  fellow !"  urged  his  host,  and  the  rest  joining  him  in 
the  request,  Dummer  at  length  yielded. 

Stretching  out  his  right  hand,  the  last  two  fingers  closed, 
the  rest  extended,  and  the  thumb  upturned,  he  began. 


Fair  Harvard.  193 

STORY    OF    DUMMER,    THE    STUDENT. 

When  I  first  came  to  college,  I  cherished  the  deepest 
affection  for  an  old  woman  in  town,  who  always  furnished 
me  with  the  best  of  good  cheer.  One  night  returning 
from  her  house  to  my  room  well  sprinkled  with  wine,  I 
heard  a  noise  within.  Excited  by  what  I  had  drunk,  I 
drew  a  dagger  and  sprang  through  the  doorway.  The 
moment  I  had  entered,  I  was  attacked  by  a  number  of 
men.  One  tried  to  hamstring  me,  a  second  made  a  thrust 
at  the  middle  of  my  body,  while  a  third  seized  a  table  to 
hurl  it  at  my  head.  By  a  downward  stroke  I  disabled  the 
rascal  at  my  feet,  then,  with  a  lunge,  I  ran  through  the 
leader  of  the  band  before  me,  and  the  rest  giving  way,  I 
pursued  and  slew  them  all.  Heavy  with  wine  and  blood, 
I  then  crept  to  my  bed  and  fell  fast  asleep. 

Aurora's  rosy  fingers  had  long  since  drawn  back  the 
veil  of  night,  when  I  awoke. 

Seeing  myself  covered  with  gore,  I  recalled  the  horrors 
of  the  previous  night,  and  burst  into  tears  of  regret  at  hav 
ing  killed  so  many  men. 

"Where  are  the  corpses?  I  then  asked  myself,  not 
without  alarm,  when  suddenly  my  door  was  burst  open, 
and  my  room  filled  with  lictors,  officers  and  students,  who 
loudly  accused  me  of  homicide. 

"I  am  innocent,"  I  protested,  but  in  vain.  They 
dragged  me  to  the  forum  before  the  judgment  seat,  in  front 
of  which  lay  a  covered  bier,  which  I  doubted  not,  bore  the 
bodies  of  the  slain. 


194  Fair  Harvard. 

1 '  Fellow  citizens, "  then  began  my  accuser,  who  was 
one  of  the  night  watch/ 'you  see  before  you  a  murderer 
who  has  killed  seven  citizens  in  a  single  night,  and  who 
was  prevented  from  killing  more  by  exhaustion  rather  than 
humanity.  This  morning  I  found  these  seven  bodies 
lying  hacked  and  bloody,  and  the  prisoner  sleeping  hard 
by  as  peacefully  as  if  he  had  killed  seven  fleas. 

"Let  all  men  who  value  their  own  lives,  deal  just  punish 
ment  to  the  monster,  who  has  deprived  our  neighbors  of 
theirs." 

The  people  loudly  applauded  this  speech,  and  the  crier 
then  bade  me  answer. 

"  My  friends, "  I  faltered,  struggling  to  find  words  in 
my  terror,  "  I  am  paralyzed,  not  with  guilt,  but  with  aston 
ishment  at  this  charge.  That  I  killed  these  robbers  I  ad 
mit,  but  I  killed  them  in  defending  myself  against  their  at 
tempt  to  complete  the  plunder  of  my  property  by  the  mur 
der  of  its  owner.  I  beseech  you,  at  least  not  to  punish  a 
man,  who,  at  the  risk  of  his  own  life,  has  preserved  from 
danger  the  lives  and  fortunes  of  you  all." 

"Bravo!"  shouted  the  people,  and  I  should  have  been 
at  once  set  free,  had  not  an  old  hag,  whom  Death  had 
scorned,  made  her  way  through  the  crowd  to  the  bier,  and 
beating  her  breast,  screeched  out,  "Pity,  my  country 
men,  I  implore  you  !  pity  a  childless  widow.  Since  you 
cannot  give  me  back  my  children,  at  least  give  me  ven 
geance.  Bid  the  murderer  remove  the  pall  from  the  bier : 
the  sight  of  his  victims  will  either  strike  him  dumb  or  ex 
tort  a  confession.  '* 


Fair  Harvard.  195 

" Excellent,"  exclaimed  the  people,  and  I  was  led  re 
luctantly  to  the  bier,  and  forced  to  remove  the  pall,  when, 
oh,  ye  Gods  !  what  a  sight  met  my  eyes.  Before  me  lay 
seven  swine,  stabbed  and  gashed  like  the  body  of  Caesar  ! 
The  sight  froze  me  to  the  ground,  but  caused  the  whole 
assembly,  and  the  solid  earth,  to  shake  with  laughter. 
Many  of  the  spectators  rolled  in  the  dust  in  an  agony  of 
mirth ;  others  clasped  themselves  tightly  two  and  two  for 
safety  ;  not  a  few  burst  asunder,  and  the  bulk  of  them 
became  corpulent  from  that  very  moment. 

"Do  not,  friend  Dummer,"  said  one  of  the  judges,  at 
length  enforcing  silence,  "think  that  this  jest  has  been 
played  upon  you  from  any  ill  will.  This  is  the  day  of  the 
festival  of  the  god  of  Laughter,  the  tutelary  divinity  of  the 
students,  which  is  always  marked  by  some  conceit.  It  is 
to  propitiate  that  deity,  and  not  from  any  want  of  respect, 
that  you  have  been  offered  as  a  temporary  sacrifice. " 

"By  the  quiver  of  Cupid,  had  you  been  in  such  real 
peril  as  I  myself  incurred  the  other  day,  you  would  have 
cared  little  for  such  a  jest,"  said  Van  Courtland,  and  his 
friends  urging  him,  began  the  following  story  : 

STORY  OF  VAN  COURTLAND,  THE  STUDENT. 

I  have,  as  you  know,  been  long  enslaved  with  love  for 
Galatea,  a  roguish  girl,  fresher  than  ivy,  and  fairer  than  the 
swan.  Her  father,  Damcetas,  is  a  rustic,  whose  humble 
turf-covered  cottage,  smokes  behind  a  scanty  field  of  com 
— his  little  kingdom.  Hard  by,  a  brook  paints  its  banks 


196  Fair  Harvard. 

with  purple  flowers,  while  overhead,  trees  and  vines  weave 
a  pleasant  shade. 

Damoetas  had  long  since  forbidden  me  to  visit  his 
daughter,  but  what  can  avail  against  the  power  of  love, 
who,  with  ease,  can  blind  the  eyes  of -Argus,  or  outwit 
Mercury  himself  in  cunning  ? 

This  simple  rustic  had  two  tunics  of  different  colors  : 
one  of  these,  whenever  his  business  would  detain  him  and 
his  stout  son,  Thyrsis,  late  from  home,  Galatea  hid,  which 
forced  him  to  wear  the  other,  a  well  known  sign. 

A  few  days  since,  seeing  Damcetas  bringing  me  the  mes 
sage  of  his  absence,  I  hastened  to  the  cottage. 

Entering,  I  found  Galatea  alone,  and  strove  to  win  a 
kiss  from  her  coy  denial.  She,  eager  only  not  too  easily 
to  yield,  at  length  clasped  her  arms  around  my  neck  and 
exclaimed,  ' '  Thus  !  thus  !  I  forge  for  you  the  chains  of 
Venus.  Tell  me,  how  long  will  you  wear  them  ?" 

"  So  long,"  I  answered,  "as  the  bee  shall  love  the  wild 
thyme,  or  the  cicada  feed  upon  the  dew. " 

Scarcely  had  I  spoken,  when  the  step  of  Damoetas  and 
Thyrsis  was  heard  drawing  near  the  door,  followed  by  the 
bark  of  their  mastiff  Scylax,  who  had  run  on  before 
them. 

Galatea  turned  pale,  and  looked  anxiously  around  for 
some  means  of  escape.  Seeing  none,  she  led  me  into  the 
room  next  to  the  one  in  which  we  were  seated.  "This,"  she 
hastily  whispered,  "is  your  only  hiding  place/' and  bade 
me  conceal  myself  in  a  large  ash-box,  which  stood  in  a 
corner. 


Fair  Harvard.  197 

In  this  filthy  kennel  I  crouched,  while  my  mistress  ran 
to  the  door. 

' '  I  was  busy  cooking, "  she  said,  as  she  opened  it,  ' '  and 
did  not  expect  you  back  so  soon. " 

"Nor  should  we  have  returned/'  replied  Damoetas, 
"but  as  we  approached  the  market  place,  a  viper  ran 
across  our  path,  and  we  hurried  home,  fearing  least  some 
evil  might  befall  us." 

Without  more  words,  Galatea  prepared  dinner,  and  the 
three  sat  down  to  their  meal  of  bacon,  gruel,  lentils,  curds, 
and  mellow  apples  ;  for  so  I  heard  the  old  man  joyfully  tell 
them  over. 

Meanwhile  I  knelt,  cramped  and  covered  with  ashes, 
feeling  like  a  mourner  at  my  own  funeral,  nor  in  my 
wretchedness  did  I  believe  that  the  gods  any  longer  heeded 
the  sufferings  of  us  mortals.  Suddenly  I  felt  a  treacherous 
cinder  eat  through  my  tunic,  and  burn  into  my  flesh. 
The  pain  made  me  writhe,  and  the  sofmd  caught  the  too 
sharp  ears  of  Thyrsis. 

"  By  Silenus  I"  he  cried.  "  Here's  rare  sport !  A  rat  in 
the  ash-box  !  We'll  scald  it  to  death  !"  and  springing  from 
his  seat,  he  ran  to  the  fire-place  to  carry  out  his  purpose. 

This  suggestion  was  so  far  from  giving  me  any  pleasure, 
that  with  the  same  breath  consigning  the  boy  to  the  cross, 
and  myself  to  Good  Fortune,  I  leaped  from  the  box,  and 
sprang  towards  the  door. 

"Thieves  !  thieves  !  May  Jupiter  protect  us  !"  shrieked 
Galatea,  and  throwing  her  arms  about  her  father,  favored 
my  escape. 


198  Fair  Harvard. 

I  had,  however,  but  reached  the  centre  of  the  corn-field, 
when,  as  the  wolf  pursues  the  wanton  kid,  Scylax  bounded 
upon  my  track,  and  in  a  moment  more  had  seized  my 
toga  in  his  teeth.  This  I  at  once  threw  him  as  a  sop,  and 
before  he  had  devoured  it,  I  was  far  on  my  way  home, 
where  I  arrived,  covered  with  sweat,  and  foaming  at  the 
mouth. 

My  fellow  students,  to  whom  I  told  my  story,  showed  me 
no  sympathy,  but  eyed  me  askance,  and  muttered  'to  each 
other,  that  I  had  doubtless  caught  the  hydrophobia  !  One 
of  them  soon  proposed  a  most  horrible  test.  Filling  two 
goblets,  one  with  choice  Falernian,  and  the  other  with 
water,  a  beverage  I  abhor,  he  whispered  to  his  comrades, 
"If  he  drinks  the  water,  he  will  prove  that  he  is  not  mad." 

They  then  all  left  the  room,  and  fastening  me  alone 
within,  watched  my  movements  through  a  crack.  I  was 
forced,  therefore,  in  order  to  free  myself,  to  drain  a  large 
goblet  of  water.  This,  though  it  proved  to  my  friends 
that  I  was  sane,  almost  convinced  me  that  I  was  indeed  a 
madman." 

"You  were  safe,"  said  Rakeman,  "in  any  event;  for 
they  who  die  for  virtue's  sake,  do  not  perish." 

"So  may  the  God  Belly-full  love  me  !"  exclaimed  the 
Parasite ;  "I  pity  the  persons  who  had  tried  to  stop  you. 
You  would  have  set  them  all  hunting  for  their  teeth  and 
bones.  Do  you  remember  that  day  at  the  circus,  when 
with  one  blow  of  your  fist  you  broke  the  fore-leg  of  an  ele 
phant — fore-leg,  did  I  say  !  I  meant  the  thigh — and  by  a 
careless  stroke.  By  heaven !  had  you  made  an  effort,  you 


Fair  Harvard.  199 

would  have  gone  through  his  skull.  I  drink  to  your  es 
cape  :  drink  deep  my  patron,  a  rex  should  never  die  by  a 
dry  death.  Had  you  been  lost,  what  would  have  become 
of  us  parasites,"  he  continued  sadly.  "  Alack-a-day  ;  this 
business  of  dining  out,  is  not  what  it  used  to  be.  Those 
holy  words,  '  do  dine  with  me  to-day, '  are  growing  obso 
lete  in  this  profane  age.  Were  it  not  for  the  few  hundred 
farthings  I  pick  up  by  way  of  sportula,  I  should  long  since 
have  become  a  hungry  shade.  I  am  thinking  of  making  an 
auction  of  my  mots  ;  whoever  bids  most  dinners  shall 
have  them  all ;  I  will  then  retire  from  my  profession,  and 
hang  up  my  tongue  in  the  temple  of  Ceres.  You,  indeed, 
Van  Courtland,  are  a  gentleman  of  the  old  school  :  I 
never  make  you  smile,  but  you  give  me  a  smile  in  return. 

"Boy,  fill  Ayres's  glass  again;  give  him  another  piece  of 
the  boar  !  Look  at  our  friend  !"  cried  the  host,  admiringly. 
"How  many  more  pounds  he  weighs  than  Hannibal  or 
Caesar.  One  continent  cannot  satisfy  him  ;  you  must  cross 
the  seas  and  ransack  the  lakes  and  forests  of  the  world. 
Nature  opposes  to  him  the  rocky  shell-fish  and  the  savage 
boar  in  vain ;  he  washes  them  down  with  a  draught  of 
Alban  wine.  '  Nothing/  he  exclaims,  '  has  been  eaten  while 
anything  remains  that  can  be  eaten  !'" 

"Speak,  Sweatrame,  that  I  may  see  you,"  he  added,  turn 
ing  to  the  latter,  ' '  you  look  more  gloomy  to-day  than  the 
solitary  tooth  of  an  ancient  virgin  when  she  smiles.  A 
painted  cheek  in  a  rain  storm  is  more  cheerful,  or  false  hair 
when  it  feels  the  caress  of  a  lover. " 


200  Fair  Harvard. 

"No  one  could  have  better  reason  to  be  sad,"  replied 
Sweatrame,  "than  myself.  For  three  weeks  my  childless 
old  uncle  had  been  coughing  violently.  I  thought  he  was 
about  to  do  the  polite  thing  and  that  my  fortune  was  made. 
God  help  me ;  this  morning  I  met  him  hale  and  hearty  ; 
he  had  been  only  flattering  me.  Once  I  believed  what 
the  poets  tell  us  was  true,  that  all  men  are  mortal.  Now  I 
have  ceased  to  cherish  even  such  a  hope. " 

The  guests  were  silent  for  some  minutes  in  pity  for  the 
sufferer,  when  the  host  nodded  to  the  structor,  at  which  slaves 
entered  with  a  charger  which  they  placed  upon  the  table. 
This  was  filled  with  a  figure  made  of  rich  paste,  which  rep 
resented  the  citadel  of  Rome,  guarded  by  six  fat  geese 
with  their  feathers  still  upon  them. 

"How  can  we  eat  fowls  unplucked?"  asked  the  dis 
appointed  faces  of  the  guests.  The  host  smiled  at 
their  confusion,  when  the  carver,  without  using  a  knife, 
took  hold  of  the  tail  of  each  goose  and  lifting  it 
back,  disclosed  the  insides  filled  with  stuffed  geese's  livers, 
truffles,  more  costly  than  Sicilian  granaries,  pieces  of 
cranes  sprinkled  with  salt  and  corn,  limbs  of  pregnant 
hares  torn  off,  rare  fish,  blackbirds,  and  pigeons  without 
their  haunches. 

"  That  hare  will  make  you  handsome  for  seven  days," 
said  Pippins,  a  man  famous  for  cutting  men's  throats  with 
a  mot,  as  Saulsbury  was  helping  himself  to  a  piece  of  that 
dish.  ' '  Eat  it  quickly  that  we  may  see  the  change. " 

' '  If  eating  a  hare  makes  one  handsome, "  returned  the 


Fair  Harvard.  201 

latter,  "it  is  clear,  Pippins,  that  you  have  never  so  much 
as  tasted  on'e." 

' '  Geese  often  cackle  when  there  is  no  Rome  to  be  saved, " 
rejoined  Pippins,  at  a  loss  for  a  repartee. 

' '  By  Ceres  !  "  broke  out  the  belly  of  Ayres,  ' '  how  happy 
this  fish  looks  for  gracing  the  table  of  our  rex.  ' 1  was 
eager/  it  seems  to  say,  'to  be  caught  V"  and  the  parasite 
grasped  a  whole  fish  with  one  hand,  while  with  the  other 
he  took  the  last  piece  of  bread  from  the  bread-basket. 

"  May  the  gods  confound  you  !"  muttered  Hayward, 
angrily.  ' '  At  least,  Ayres,  leave  food  enough  in  the  world  to 
furnish  your  own  funeral  feast.  Your  mouth  seems  the 
breathing  hole  of  Hell !  Oh,  the  morality  of  this  age  ! 
We  are  devoured  by  diners  out  and  parasites.  What  can  be 
worse  than  these  flatterers  ?  Smile,  and  they  break  into  a 
horse  laugh  ;  weep,  and  they  drown  you  in  tears.  I  won 
der,  Ayres,  that  you  have  never  left  your  soul  sticking  in  the 
gravy,  like  the  shoe  of  a  horse  that  has  been  lost  in  the 
mud!" 

"Cease  your  barking,  you  crabbed  cynic/'  exclaimed 
Sweatrame  ;  "you  swim  through  the  conversation  like  a 
cuttle-fish  that  turns  all  the  water  around  it  into  ink.  The 
stomach  is  the  fountain  of  all  good.  My  sole  prayer  to  the 
gods  is  that  they  may  keep  mine  always  full.  I  have  made 
me  a  Bacchus  out  of  a  sponge,  to  which  every  day  I  pour 
out — I  mean  I  pour  down  libations. " 

1 '  You  should  rather  pray, "  said  Hayward,  "for  a  soul 
that  is  unmoved  by  anger  or  desire  ;  that  prefers  the  labors 
of  Hercules  to  lust,  or  luxury,  or  pomp.  What  do  you 


202  Fair  Harvard. 

think  will  be  your  end  with  your  purse  still  shrinking  as 
your  throat  widens,  when  you  have  sunk  all  your  property 
in  a  belly  large  enough  to  contain  horses  and  houses  and 
broad  acres  ? " 

"By  Bacchus,  I  will  then  go  and  live  in  my  belly  if  it 
is  so  large  and  well  furnished." 

' '  May  the  gods, "  cried  Rakeman,  ' '  give  you  a  barber, 
Hayward,  for  your  advice !  Do  you  accuse  Sweatrame  of 
extravagance  ?  Whatever  its  price,  who  can  pay  less  for 
anything  than  he  who  pays  nothing?  'The  thief/  he 
teaches  his  creditors,  '  will  break  open  your  money  chests  ; 
the  flames  will  devour  your  houses  ;  the  waves  will  swallow 
up  your  ships.  That  which  you  give  your  friends  is  alone 
out  of  the  reach  of  fortune  ;  that  alone  you  will  possess  for 
ever;  'and  no  human  creature/  he  reminds  them,  'should 
be  other  than  a  friend  and  a  neighbor. ' " 

"What  one  obtains  on  credit/'  said  Pippins,  "is  indeed 
the  gift  of  the  gods. " 

"  Extravagance  !"  shouted  Sweatrame.  "Blame  me  for 
extravagance !  What  can  be  lower  than  to  dispute  the 
price  of  anything  ?  There  is  but  one  possible  combination 
of  circumstances  when  it  is  not  base,  and  that  is  when  you 
intend  to  pay  for  it. " 

"Though  to  borrow/purged  Hayward,  "is  human,  to 
pay  is  divine. " 

"Have  done  with  your  strife,  my  friends  !"  begged  the 
host;  '•  Again  rest  your  elbows  on  the  couches!  Fill  up 
your  glass  Hayward  !  Even  great  Socrates  loved  jovial  din 
ner  parties,  and  went  so  far  as  to  wash  his  face  and  put  on 
his  shoes  when  he  went  to  them. " 


Fair  Harvard.  203 

"Whoever  wishes/'  continued  Rakeman,  not  to  be 
moved,  "may  undertake  the  labors  of  Hercules:  for 
myself' I  do  not  disdain  to  while  away  the  morning  with 
draughts  of  good  old  Falernian,  while  my  mistress,  seated 
by  my  side,  spins  out  for  me  the  golden  thread  of  life." 

-Your  philosophy  is  partial,  Hayward,"  said  Saulsbury, 
-my  aim  is  to  fit  myself  for  any  station,  to  be  equally  at 
home  in  a  palace  or  a  hovel,  and  equally  well  dressed  in 
purple  or  in  rags. " 

-Give  me,"  mused  Bowyer,  "a  moderate  fortune,  a 
hearth  always  burning,  health,  strength,  a  few  books,  and  a 
wife  not  over  learned,  and  you  may  have  all  the  palaces  and 
hovels  in  the  world." 

-Why  has  the  band  stopped  playing?"  called  out  the 
host.  "Drain  your  glasses,  my  friends  I  Boy,  do  you  not 
see  Pippins'  glass  there  is  empty  ?  Fill  up  all  your  glasses 
again !  When  drinking  does  not  keep  lengths  with  talking, 
a  dinner  is  a  sorry  cripple." 

The  slaves,  hastening  to  obey  their  master's  order,  tipped 
over  an  amphora  of  Chian  wine. 

The  sight  of  so  much  good  wine  spilling  made  Ayres 

faint  away. 

-Give  him  a  kiss!"  cried  Sweatrame,  as  Saulsbury  in 
vain  to  strove  to  bring  back  the  parasite  to  life.  "Close  up 
his  eyes.  Condamatum  esf.  Take  him  down  and  throw 
hot  water  over  him  1" 

The  host,  however,  shrewdly  nodded  to  the  structor, 
and  the  smell  of  the  fourth  course,  which  consisted  of  two 
noble  peacocks,  at  once  awoke  Ayres  to  life  and  hunger. 


204  Fair  Harvard. 

When  this  course  was  finished,  slaves  removed  the  trays, 
and  sprinkled  the  floor  with  sawdust  mixed  with  saffron 
and  cinnabar. 

' '  Do  not, "  said  Ayres  to  his  host,  ' '  allow  your  slaves  to 
approach  too  near  the  cynic  :  they  will  be  bitten,  and  dog 
days  are  near. " 

''Have,  you  no  sulphur?"  retorted  Hay  ward,  "to  purify 
us  from  this  pestilence  ;"  and  the  dispute  would  have  waxed 
warmer,  had  not  the  guests  been  attracted  by  the  singular 
device  of  the  menses  secundce  which  were  now  served. 

A  miniature  vineyard  and  orchard  divided  a  large  platter. 
In  the  vineyard,  vines  covered  with  clusters  of  grapes, 
clung  to  their  marital  elms.  The  trees  in  the  orchard 
were  hung  with  a  variety  of  fruit ;  apples,  olives,  plums, 
pears,  dates,  figs,  and  quinces  stuck  over  with  almonds. 
Among  the  branches  were  perched  small  game  birds 
stuffed  with  paste,  raisins,  and  nuts,  while  suspended  from 
the  largest  tree  two  Priapi  watched  over  the  orchard  and 
warned  off  intruders.  Lying  on  the  grass  was  Mercury 
with  the  spoils  of  a  thieving  excursion  spread  out  before 
him. 

"This  little  dog,"  said  the  host,  taking  up  one  of  them, 
' '  is  yours,  Pippins ;  it  has  more  tricks  than  would  fill  a 
page.  Let  me  present  these  dumb-bells  to  you,  Bowyer, 
though  I  think  you  would  find  it  a  healthier  exercise  to 
dig  in  the  vineyard  than  to  use  them.  These  barber's  in 
struments  are  for  you,  Hayward.  Both  these  Priapi  you 
may  have,  Sweatrame  ;  though  you  eat  every  bit  of  them 
you  will  not  be  less  pure." 


Fair  Harvard.  205 

The  guests  wrapped  their  apophoreta  in  their  napkins, 
Ayres  receiving  a  gridiron  and  two  cheese  cakes,  Dummer 
a  parasol  and  a  box  of  pomatum,  Rakeman,  a  set  of  tes- 
serce,  and  Saulsbury  some  Vitellian  tablets. 

' '  Whoever  wishes, "  said  the  host,  as  a  slave  was  passing 
around  tooth-picks  made  of  lentisc  wood,  "can  now 
bathe.  You  need  not  fear  sudden  death  and  intestacy ; 
the  bath,  I  assure  you,  is  well  tempered."  Then  bidding 
a  slave  watch  a  clepsydra  which  marked  an  hour,  and  sum 
mon  them  when  it  had  half  run  out,  Van  Courtland  fol 
lowed  his  guests  from  the  room. 

"How  sweet  your  flowers  smell!"  exclaimed  Ayres 
when  the  guests  had  reassembled  in  the  triclinium,  bril 
liantly  lighted  with  candelabra.  "Would  that  I  were  all 
nose,  (saving  my  belly's  presence,)  that  I  might  enjoy 
them  the  better !" 

' '  Give  me  a  crown  of  ivy, "  cried  Rakeman,  as  he  re 
clined  upon  his  couch;  "I  will  foil  Bacchus  with  his  own 
weapons. " 

"I  prefer  the  myrtle  sacred  to  Venus,"  said  Sweatrame. 

"I  shall  wear  a  garland  of  violets  and  hyacinths  around 
my  neck  after  the  Greek  fashion, "  said  the  host.  ' '  You, 
Wentworth,  will  pull  your  wreath  in  pieces,  we  all  know 
why.  Who  shall  be  master  of  the  feast  ?"  he  added,  when 
the  rest  of  the  guests  had  bound  their  perfumed  hair  with 
chaplets  of  roses.  "You,  Pippins,  make  the  first  throw," 
and  he  passed  the  dice-box  to  the  latter. 

"May  my   mistress  favor  me!"  prayed  Pippins  as  he 


206  Fair  Harvard. 

made  his  cast.  ' '  By  the  three  mouths  of  Cerberus,  it  is 
the  dog." 

' '  Give  me  the  dice, "  cried  Rakeman.  ' '  See  I  have 
thrown  a  Venus,"  and  luck  favoring  none  of  the  rest,  Rake 
man  was  confirmed  as  Lord  of  the  Cup. 

"  Drink,"  he  commanded,  "as  many  cyalhi?&  there  are 
letters  in  the  name  of  our  host !  Good-bye  to  all  water: 
What  we  drink  to-night  shall  be  unadulterated.  Now,  my 
boys,  as  many  cyathi  as  there  are  letters  in  the  names  of 
our  mistresses  !" 

"Remember  the  saying,"  urged  Hay  ward,  "the  first  cup 
for  thirst,  the  second  for  mirth,  the  third  for  delight,  the 
fourth  for  madness  ;  we  should  drink  with  moderation." 

"A  farthing  for  moderation!"  returned  Rakeman. 
"Nothing  great  was  ever  accomplished  by  moderation, 
^schylus  was  well  soaked  when  he  wrote  his  tragedies. 
Alcaeus  and  Aristophanes  were  never  sober.  Immortality  is 
a  tippler.  We  will  make  Bacchus  himself  envious.  Boy, 
strain  the  wine  more  quickly  !" 

"  Drink  deep  !"  cried  Sweatrame.  "The  just  enjoy  an 
immortality  of  intoxication  in  Hades,  as  a  reward  for  their 
virtue.  Rakeman,  my  good  fellow,  since  we  cannot  hope 
for  that,  we  will  make  the  best  of  our  present  life. " 

"Even  Plato,"  observed  the  host,  "that  pink  of  pro 
priety,  allowed  his  disciples  to  get  drunk  on  sacred  days. " 

"Then,"  added  Sweatrame,  "I  will  so  live  that  every 
day  shall  be  a  Sunday — I  mean  a  sacred  day. " 

"Silence!"  enjoyed  Rakeman,  " while  each  of  us  sings 
a,  song  in  turn.  I  will  begin,  to  give  your  confidence. 


Fair  Harvard.  207 


"  Fill  full  the  cup,  my  boys, 
Each  drop  we  sup,  my  boys, 
Floats  our  hearts  up. 

Joy's  wings  quickly  clutch, 

Cast  the  cripple  Care  a  crutch  ; 

And  while  a  health  goes  round, 

Let  bright  To-day  be  ivy  crowned ! 

In  dull  delay  what  pleasure's  fouud  ? 

Fill  full  the  cup,  my  boys, 
Each  drop  we  sup,  my  boys, 
Floats  our  hearts  up. 

Let  the  poor  miser  measure 

For  a  fool's  heirs  his  treasure  ; 

We'Jl  bid  a  health  go  round  ; 

Let  our  To-day  with  gold  be  crowned ! 

In  hoarded  wealth  what  pleasure's  found  ? 

Fill  full  the  cup,  my  boys, 
Each  drop  we  sup,  my  boys, 
Floats  our  heart  up. 

What's  war?— but  a  rattle, 

And  fame  ?— but  vain  prattle  ; 

Then  bid  a  health  go  round  ; 

Our  brows  with  ivy  shall  be  bound  ! 

In  thirsty  bays  what  pleasure's  found  ? 

Fill  full  the  cup,  my  boys. 
Each  drop  we  sup,  my  boys, 
Floats  our  hearts  up. 

Where  gloomy  Styx  flows, 

Nor  grape  nor  kiss  grows  ; 

Then  bid  a  "health  go  round  ; 

Let  live  To-day  in  joys  abound  ! 

In  Death's  dark  realms^what  pleasure's  found?" 

"Bravo!"  cried  Ayres,  and  clapped  his  hands.  "Catul 
lus  himself  is  outdone.  But  in  Bacchus's  name,  let  us 
drink  between  songs  ;  the  gluck  of  wine  is  the  sweetest 
melody  to  my  ear." 

"I  have  some  verses  about  Danae  and  her  child/'  said 
Saulsbury,  upon  whom  Rakeman  next  called;  "Let  me 
recite  them  in  place  of  a  song. 


208  Fair  Harvard. 

"  Sleep !  Beauty,  sleep !  tliy  head  upon  my  breast, 
Ah !  burden  of  delight !  is  gently  prest ; 
Thy  rosy  eyelids  closed  cannot  all  hide 
Thine  eyes'  soft  light ;  the  rays  their  veil  divide 
As  sun-beams  clouds  :  on  thy  sweet  lips  a  smile 
Is  brightening  of  magic  to  beguile 
The  raging  night  of  gloom.     Sleep !   beauty,  sleep  ! 
While  o'er  thy  sacred  form,  my  prayers  keep 
Vigil.    Without,  I  hear  the  angry  wave, 
The  cruel  wind,  and  man  more  cruel  rave  ; 
But  thou,  Darling,  clasped  in  thy  mother's  arm 
Sleepst  calmly  on,  what  shouldst  thou  dream  of  harm  ?" 

''Would  to  Jupiter,"  sighed  Sweatrame,  "some  one 
would  turn  herself  into  gold  for  love  of  me  !  I  would  clap 
her  into  my  girdle  before  she  could  be  retransformed. " 

"I  have  a  surprise  for  you,"  said  the  host  when  the  guests 
had  finished  their  songs.  ' '  What  would  you  not  give  to 
see  Nania  as  Ariadne  !  " 

At  these  words  a  curtain  drawn  across  one  end  of  the 
room  fell,  and  unveiled  a  beautiful  danseuse.  A  turban 
was  bound  about  her  head  ;  an  eastern  robe  hung  loosely 
from  her  shoulders,  her  lips  were  parted,  her  hands 
stretched  forth  in  supplication.  The  band  began  to  play 
a  plaintive  air,  and  the  chorus  to  sing  the  canticwn, 

"  Siccine  me  patriis  avectam,  perfide,  ab  oris, 
Perfide,  deserto  liquisti  in  litore,  Theseu  ?" 

as  Ariadne,  with  sinking  steps,  moved  slowly  across  the 
stage. 

The  flutes  then  quickened  their  measures  :  the  dancer's 
step  grew  light ;  her  eyes  flashed  through  their  mask  ;  her 
hands,  feet,  and  body,  spoke  the  eloquence  of  wild  de 
spair  ;  her  robe  seemed  reluctant  to  hide  so  many  charms. 


Fair  Harvard.  209 

"Tis  Tiptonini,"  cried  Sweatrame,  "as  sure  as  I'm  a 
Roman  citizen,"  and  he  drained  an  Allifanian  cup. 

"Brava!  brava  1"  shouted  Rakeman,  and  threw  his 
wreath  at  Ariadne's  feet. 

Ayres  placed  his  hand  upon  his  belly,  speechless. 

Suddenly  wild  and  inhuman  shrieks  broke  into  the 
room,  and  called  all  the  guests  to  their  feet. 

Our  readers,  to  learn  the  cause  of  this  interruption,  must 
turn  their  eyes  towards  the  ostium.  The  slave  there  fas 
tened,  had,  during  the  main  pait  of  the  evening,  continued 
sober.  As  the  weight  of  his  chains  increased,  however, 
time  began  to  drag  heavily  with  him. 

"  Be  me  sowl !"  he  muttered,  "  if  I  only  had  a  dhrop  of 
poteen  !  sure  it's  myself  knows  the  ould  smack  of  it. 
Musha,  acushla  macree,"  he  called  to  a  young  slave  pass 
ing  by,  ' '  may  the  ould  boy  keep  a  cool  corner  for  you  in 
Hell !  will  you  not  give  me  the  smallest  dhrop  of  some- 
thin'  to  keep  out  the  cowld  o'  the  evenin'  ?" 

The  boy  was  won  by  this  rude  eloquence,  and  the  Infant 
drained  goblet  after  goblet  of  choice  wines,  'which  in  the 
absence  of  poteen  he  pronounced  ' '  foin  dhrinks. " 

The  conflict  of  these  children  of  Bacchus  among  them 
selves,  soon  kindled  a  kindred  spirit  of  warfare  in  the 
Milesian.  The  dog  Romulus,  who  had  grown  restive  at  the 
noises  about  him,  offered  a  ready  occasion  for  its  display. 

"Arrah!  bear  yourself  asy,  ye  crooked  cur!''  hic 
coughed  the  Infant,  as  the  dog  gave  a  low  growl.  "Is  it 
myself  you'll  be  after  bitin',  ye  dirty  orangeman  !  How  do 


210  Fair  Harvard. 

ye  like  the  douse  o'  this  switch,  ye  bluthy  heretic  !"  and  he 
struck  the  dog  a  smart  blow  with  his  virga.  "Is  it  giving 
back  talk  ye  are,  ye  spalpeen  !"  a  poke  with  the  rod,  and 
a  deep  growl  from  Romulus.  "The  curse  o'  the  crows 
upon  you,  ye  devil's  limb  !  Is  it  sich  a  baste  as  you  that 
shall  be  after  aggrawatin'  a  dacent  man  like  myself!  Do 
ye  think  I'm  a  beggarly  nager  ?" — more  pokes,  and  fiercer 
growls. 

Thus,  by  gentle  banter  with  Romulus,  the  Infant  strove 
to  solace  his  weary  minutes.  The  pleasure  of  the  dog, 
however,  in  this  diversion,  did  not  seem  so  keen  as  that  of 
the  Milesian.  Romulus's  growls  grew  deeper,  and  a  row 
of  teeth  displayed  themselves,  which  even  with  one  of  the 
Infant's  race,  when  sober,  would  have  pleaded  feelingly  for 
peace.  The  sight  of  them,  in  his  present  mood,  only 
spurred  the  slave  with  greater  zest  upon  his  sport.  He 
again  poked  the  dog  with  his  rod,  then  snapt  his  fingers 
near  his  nose,  and  at  length  stooping  down,  blew  in  his 
face.  At  this,  Romulus  drawing  back  a  few  inches,  leaped 
at  his  tormentor's  throat. 

The  Infant  had  just  reason  enough  left  in  him  to  spring 
back  for  dear  life,  when  snap  went  the  dog's  chain  :  and  as 
the  slave,  forgetting  that  he  was  bound,  turned  to  run,  the 
dog's  teeth  buried  themselves  deep  in  the  fleshiest  part  of 
his  person.  Romulus's  earnest  gripe  acted  like  a  charm  to 
restore  the  Infant  to  soberness,  but  not,  alas  !  to  content. 
As  the  dog's  teeth  pierced  the  shield  of  the  slave's  skin, 
he  gave  a  howl,  in  which  the  groans  and  yells  of  three 


Fair  Harvard.  211 

funerals  in  his  native  country,  and  three  meeting  together 
in  the  Roman  Forum  seemed  marvellously  blended. 

"Holy  Virgin!  och  !  I'm  murthered  !  ogh  !  be  the 
holy  man  !  take  aff  the  baste  !  I'm  dead  !  I'm  kilt  en 
tirely  !  Saver  above  !  a  priest !  a  priest !  och,  the  rip  o' 
Hell !"  such  were  the  undigested  words  that  burst  with  ex 
treme  unction  from  the  lips  of  the  hardened  sinner,  who 
doubtless  preferred  his  former  drunkenness  with  all  its  de 
pravity  to  the  sharp  medicine  of  returning  sobriety. 

The  tumult  at  once  brought  all  the  guests  to  the  ostium. 

' '  How  happens  it  ?"  exclaimed  Van  Courtland  angry  at 
the  interruption,  "that  no  one  lives  content  with  his  lot, 
whether  reason  marks  it  out,  or  chance  throws  it  in  his 
way?  Hue  !  hue  !"  he  called,  seeing  the  blood  upon  the 
floor;  but  not  the  eloquence  of  Cicero  could  have  tempted 
the  stern  moralist  to  let  go  his  hold  upon  the  Infant's  mind. 

' '  Mother  o'  glory  1"  shrieked  the  slave,  ' '  I'm  murthered  ! 
och  !  wurra  !  wurra !  Take  him  off.  Be  the  crass,  it's 
penethratin'  entirely.  I'm  kilt !  I'm  kilt !  och  !  ogh !  a 
priest  !  a  priest  !" 

"Throw  water  over  him,  Robin,"  cried  Wentworth, 
and  with  Rakeman  seized  the  dog  by  the  throat,  while  Van 
Courtland  grasped  him  by  the  tail,  calling  "hue,  hue  !" 

"Hue!"  repeated  Sweatrame,  whose  state  inclined  him 
to  construe  all  things  with  humor,  "hoc!  give  me  some 
hock.  Damn  your  Falernian.  Give  a  rouse,  boys.  Cure 
a  man  with  a  hair  of  the  dog  that  bit  him,"  he  added,  strik 
ing  a  more  practical  vein. 


212  Fair  Harvard. 

The  growls  of  the  mastiff,  the  yells  of  the  Infant,  the 
shouts  of  Van  and  his  friends,  the  maudlin  advice  of 
Sweatrame,  the  scholia  of  the  parrot,  the  dainty  cries  of 
Tiptonini — "  What  does  all  this  mean?"  demanded  Tutor 
Brown,  suddenly  entering  the  door. 

"Save  me,  save  me  !"  gasped  Tiptonini  delighted  at  find 
ing  some  one  at  leisure,  and  swooned  with  abandon  into 
the  arms  of  the  ravished  tutor. 

"Thank  Jove!  he's  off,"  said  Van,  as  the  dog,  half 
drowned  by  Ayres,  let  go  his  hold,  and  the  Infant,  un 
chained  by  Rakeman,  took  to  his  heels  at  full  speed  after 
a  priest. 

"Is  that  the  way  you  treat  a  lady,  sir  ?"  exclaimed  Tip 
tonini,  leaping  with  a  single  bound  from  the  floor  on  which 
she  had  been  deposited,  and  eying  the  tutor  with  indigna 
tion. 

"Gentlemen,  I  shall  have  to  report  you  all  to  the  Fac 
ulty,  "  growled  the  tutor,  ' '  give  me  your  names. " 

"  Will  you  not,  Mr.  Brown,"  inquired  Sweatrame  courte 
ously,  "before  you  make  haste  to  take  your  leave  of  us, 
have  a  glass  of  choice  old  Caecuban  wine,  sealed  in  the 
consulship  of— 

"Wine,  sir  !"  barked  the  tutor,  scratching  his  right  ear 
in  anger.  ' '  Have  you  been  having  wine,  in  your  rooms  ! 
Your  offence  is  rank,  sir,  rank  !" 

"  The  very  last  offence  of  which  I  should  have  suspected 
myself/'  returned  Sweatrame,  who  stood  at  the  foot  of  the 
class. 

The    tutor    made    no    reply,    but    snapt    his    fingers, 


Fair  Harvard. 


213 


slapped  his  right  thigh,  and  with  a  malignant  smile  left  the 
hall. 

"I  feared  as  much,"  mused  Van,  gazing  after  him,  ''for 
yesterday,  as  I  was  turning  into  Concord  Street,  I  beheld 
perched  upon  the  steeple  of  the  old  Unitarian  Church  an 
ill  omened  crow,  that  cawed  hoarsely  at  my  approach,  bod 
ing  evil.  However,  what  matters  it  ?  '  nunc  vino,  eras  in- 
gens,'  and  returning  with  his  friends,  to  the  room,  they  con 
tinued  their  revels  until  the  morning. 

Two  days  later,  Van  learnt  that  his  dinner,  added  to 
numerous  other  offences,  had  been  made  the  occasion,  by 
the  Faculty,  of  his  banishment  to  the  town  of  Stockbridge 
for  six  months. 

"  Vos  valete  et  plaudite" 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

« 

"  Nomen  tamen  baud  leve  patrum 
Manibus  hoc  referes,  telo  cecidisse  Camillse." 

"  Columbarum  fera  natura  est." 

'LEASE  pull  off  my  gloves  for  me,  Mr.  Sauls- 
bur}7  ;  my  hands  are  frozen/'  said  Miss  Camp 
bell,  with  whose  charms  the  quaint  old  win 
dow-seat  in  Wentworth's  room  was  blossoming. 

The  girl,  as  she  spoke,  reached  out  her  hand  to  our 
hero,  who  was  seated  at  her  feet  alone 

"Explain  yourself!"  cries  Mrs.  Grundy  in  her  severest 
voice  ;  but  we  enjoy  keeping  that  censorious  duenna  in 
suspense. 

"What  a  cheerful  fire  you  have!"  continued  the  girl, 
looking  around  the  room.  "See  how  the  light  leaps  over 
the  beams  in  the  ceiling,  and  plays  hide-and-go-seek  in  the 
carvings  of  your  book-cases.  What  a  clever  idea  of  yours, 
that  picture  is !"  and  she  pointed  to  a  painting  of  Went 
worth's  new  room  in  Massachusetts  Hall,  in  which  the 
photographs  of  his  friends  had  been  ingeniously  set. 

"Where  can  mother  and  Amy  be  !"  she  added,  with- an 
impatience  that  gratified  Propriety  more  than  her  other 
hearer.  "How  did  we  get  separated  from  them?  Is  it  not 
too  provoking  ?  What  a  charming  song  your  iriend,  Mr. 


Fair  Harvard.  215 

Ayres,  sang  at  the  conceit ;  it  has  always  been  a  favorite  of 
mine  : 

'  My  soul  I  bid  thee  answer, 
How  are  love's  marvels  wrought, 
Two  hearts  to  one  pulse  beating, 
Two  spirits  to  one  thought. 

And  tell  me  how  love  cometh, 
It  comes  unsought,  unsent ; 
And  tell  me  how  love  goeth, 
It  was  not  love  that  went.'  " 

Miss  Campbell  had  as  sweet  a  voice  as  ever  fitted  the 
hearts  of  men  for  stratagems  and  treasons.  As  she  sang, 
Wentworth  stole  a  glance  of  admiration  at  the  picture  be 
fore  him,  whose  beauty  flattered  the  gray  old  room,  and 
won  from  its  sombre  walls  a  smile  of  pleasure.  Miss  Camp 
bell  sat  closely  muffled  in  a  thick,  white  cloak,  which  set 
off  the  delicate  hue  of  her  cheeks,  which  is  the  pride  of  the 
girls  of  our  Eastern  coast.  One  dainty  foot  crept  from  be 
neath  the  waves  of  her  dress ;  an  arch  smile  had  escaped 
from  her  dimples  to  sun  itself  upon  her  rosy  lips  ;  the  gen 
tle  movement  of  her  breast  gave  eloquence  to  her  imperial 
form.  She  sang  with  rich  feeling,  but  without  effort,  like 
some  magic  instrument  that  voluntarily  pours  out  its  notes. 

"If  I  were  not  an  angel,"  she  said,  as  she  ended  her 
song,  "I  should  not  have  come  with  you  this  evening. 
You  have  treated  me  in  the  most  brutal  manner  :  last 
winter  you  did  not  even  make  me  a  party-call ;  and  you 
have  only  been  -to  see  me  twice  this  year.  I  have  half  a 
mind  to  revenge  myself  upon  you,"  and  she  gave  Went 
worth  a  glance,  half-humorous,  half-earnest,  which  would 
have  made  a  mother  tremble  for  her  son." 

"My  enemies,"  replied  our  hero,  "could  not  wish  me 


216  Fair  Harvard. 

a  worse  punishment  than  the  thought  of  the' pleasure  I  have 
thus  lost." 

The  boy  had  now  completed  half  his  long  task,  and 
drew  one  dangerous  hand  from  its  tiny  sheath.  The  hand 
was  cold,  but  at  its  touch  a  sudden  fire  of  mingled  pain 
and  rapture  ran  through  Wentworth's  veins,  and  with  soft 
flame  played  about  his  lips,  and  eyes,  and  temples. 

"You  sing,  do  you  not,  Mr.  Saulsbury?"  asked  Miss 
Campbell,  drawing  back  her  hand.  "You  are  such  a 
Crichton,  I  thought  you  must.  Yes ;  women  like  men  who 
sing  and  dance,  but  they  never  think  of  falling  in  love  with 
them.  Is  not  that  a  picture  of  the  Harvard  Boat :  you  are 
in  the  crew,  arn't  you  ?  Mrs.  Morris  tells  me  you  are  a 
great  student  also  :  how  can  you  find  time  to  be  both  ?  J 
wish  I  could  be  a  scholar, "  and  the  girl's  face  lit  up1  with 
enthusiasm.  "One  would  not  then  waste  one's  life  in  idle 
formalities,  but  live  to  some  high  purpose,  arming  the 
Truth  of  the  past  to  fight  for  the  Hope  of  the  future.  See, 
the  moon  has  just  risen,"  and,  with  the  prudence  of  her 
sex,  Miss  Campbell  made  Wentworth  throw  open  the  win 
dow,  and  leaned  out.  ' '  One  ought  always  to  see  a  col 
lege  by  moonlight.  The  sun  is  a  funeral  torch  ;  it  only 
lights  up  the  dead.  The  moonlight  infuses  the  world  with 
life :  at  its  coming  the  elves  dance  on  the  green  ;  the 
spirits  of  the  forests  and  the  streams  glide  from  their 
haunts,  and  the  banished  gods  move  along  the  pathway 
of  the  skies. 

' '  How  easy  it  must  be  to  study  in  these  old  buildings, " 
she  continued,  looking  back  into  the  room,  "and  how 


Fair  Harvard.  217 

glorious,  when  you  have  mastered  your  weapons,  to  go  out 
into  the  world  and  compete  for  its  honors.  I  know  you 
must  be  ambitious ;  I  had  sooner  see  a  man  dead  than 
lose  his  ambition.  Tell  me  what  you  are  going  to  do 
when  you  leave  college.  I  hope  you  will  succeed  ;  suc 
cess  is  so  important,  and  yet  it  is  so  difficult  :  even  the 
brightest  men  often  fail." 

"Success,"  replied  Wentworth  ;  for  at  the  call  of  a 
woman,  who  of  us  does  not  love  to  tread  that  narrow  path, 
that,  bordering  on  the  ridiculous,  alone  leads  to  the  soul's 
heights  ?  "What  is  education  worth,  if  it  does  not  teach  us 
the  rule  of  life,  that  makes  success  certain  ?  What  the 
world  calls  success  is  difficult  to  gain,  and  when  gained  is 
of  little  worth.  Real  success  is  even  more  difficult,  but 
the  path  to  it  is  plain  ;  it  is  the  climbing  it  that  is  so  hard. 
The  highest  development  of  our  highest  nature — he  who 
makes  this  his  earnest  aim  through  life  succeeds,  and  he 
alone  achieves  a  success  worth  living  for.  Wealth,  posi 
tion,  birth ! — these  distinctions  are  but  the  rude  attempts 
of  the  herd  to  classify  themselves.  The  largest  growth  is 
the  truest  success  ;  he  who  strives  for  that,  whether  he  lives 
as  a  prince  or  peasant,  what  matters  it !  to  a  Man,  all  places 
are  alike  honorable." 

"What  should  you  do  if  you  fell  in  love?"  asked  Miss 
Campbell,  who  listened  to  the  boy  with  amusement,  not 
unmixed  with  admiration.  "That  would  sadly  interfere 
with  your  scheme,  would  it  not." 

"  My  love,"  answered  Wentworth,  with  warmth,  "should 
grow  with  my  growth  ;  it  should  be  the  divine  counterpart 


218  Fair  Harvard. 

of  every  thought  and  feeling,  the  life  of  my  life,  the  soul 
of  my  soul  " 

A  loud  knock,  worthy  of  the  ghost  of  Malthus,  inter 
rupted  this  gentle  discourse,  and  made  Wentworth  spring 
to  the  door. 

"I'm  so  glad  to  see  you,"  he  said,  with  the  earnestness 
of  insincerity,  as  Mrs.  Campbell,  with  her  niece,  Miss 
Leigh,  entered  the  room,  under  the  protection  of  Rake- 
man,  the  brave  Southron;  "I  was  on  the  point  of  run 
ning  out  to  look  for  you  ;  how  did  you  escape  us  ;  we 
thought  you  were  just  behind  us.  Shall  I  not  take  your 
cloak,  Miss  Leigh?" 

"I  thought  we  were  going  to  Mrs.  Morris's,"  said  Rake- 
man,  "and  didn't  find  out  my  mistake  till  we  were  some 
distance  from  your  room." 

"We  seem  to  have  reached  a  very  comfortable  harbor, 
at  last,"  said  Mrs.  Campbell,  whose  serenity  returned  with 
her  breath,  and  was  not  dispelled  by  the  sight  of  a  pleasant 
supper  spread  upon  the  table. 

"What  luxurious  rooms  you  have  !"  she  added,  seating 
herself  upon  the  sofa,  and  loosening  her  furs ;  "Carpets,  pic 
tures,  curtains  !  how  college  has  changed  since  my  time  !" 

"It  must  have  changed  very  quickly,  then,"  returned 
Wentworth,  a  remark  which  shook  for  some  months  the 
good  lady's  belief  in  the  degeneracy  of  the  present  day. 
"You  can't  think,  Mrs.  Campbell,"  he  continued,  "how 
the  sight  of  ladies  in  college  touches  the  heart  of  a  student. 


'  0  brave  new  world, 

That  has  such  people  in  't  1' 


Fair  Harvard.  219 

Most  of  us  have  never  seen  a  woman,  except  a  College 
Goody,  who  is  a  sort  of  she-Caliban." 

A  stalwart  Ethiop,  who  answered  to  the  name  of  Ariel, 
now  passed  round  supper,  after  which  Rakeman  made 
a  short  speech,  of  which  the  burden  was  the  contrast  that 
this  jewelled  hour  of  delight  offered  to  the  grim  rigor  and 
Herculean  labors  of  college  life. 

"Is  not  that  the  sign  of  the  Mush  and  Milk  Club,  Mr. 
Saulsbury  ?"  asked  Miss  Campbell,  as  Rakeman  ended. 
"  How  I  should  like  to  belong  to  a  secret  society  !  Do  tell 
me  all  about  it." 

"We  are  bound  by  the  most  solemn  oaths,  Miss  Camp 
bell  "— 

"Oh,  you  know  it  is  no  crime  to  perjure  yourself  for  a 
woman. " 

"Well,  if  you  insist  on  it,  but  remember  that  I  risk  my 
life  for  you  :  treason,  by  the  laws  of  the  Club,  is  punished 
with  death.  The  initiation  is  very  warming ;  compared  to 
it,  the  tortures  of  the  stake,  the  rack,  the  cross,  or  even  your 
frown,  Miss  Campbell,  are  but  gentle  pastimes  " 

' '  How  ungallant !  you  don't  know  ;  you  underrate  me, " 
returned  the  girl,  justly  incensed. 

"Nonsense  !  Mr.  Saulsbury,"  broke  in  Miss  Leigh,  "you 
can't  deceive  me.  Mr.  Brandreth  once  showed  me  a  photo 
graph  of  Mr.  Bowyer  as  Titania,  and  told  me  all  about 
your  plays  and  suppers ;  he  said  you  had  nothing  but 
ortolans  and  Lafitte. " 

"  He  broke  his  oath,"  said  Rakeman,  gloomily.    "Were 


220  Fair  Harvard. 

it  not  so  natural,  Miss  Leigh,  to  break  anything  for  your 
sake,  I  should  inform  against  him. " 

"  How  nobly  your  Oxford  cap  looks  !"  cried  Miss  Camp 
bell,  who  had  been  again  examining  the  contents  of  the 
room  ;  and  going  to  the  wall  she  took  it  down  and  placed 
it  upon  her  head.  The  learned  cap  cast  a  shadow  of  wis 
dom  on  the  girl's  fair  face,  and  chid  the  laughing  waves  of 
chestnut  hair  that  mocked  its  authority. 

"Exspectata  oratio  a  Campbell/'  cried  Wentworth,  imi 
tating  the  voice  of  the  worthy  President. 

' ' '  Quousque  tandem "  began  Miss  Campbell,  shaking 

a  threatening  finger  at  our  hero. 

"Hear!  hear!"  cried  Rakeman,  rapping  with  his 
knuckles  on  the  table. 

"Stop!  stop!"  interposed  Mrs.  Campbell,  good  hu- 
moredly,  "this  is  very  improper." 

' '  Do  allow  her  to  finish  the  oration,  please, "  begged 
Wentworth  ;  "  '  when  you  are  at  Rome,  do  as  the  Romans 
do. '  Portia  herself  could  not  have  been  a  better  orator. " 

"I  think,  on  the  whole,  mother  is  right,"  said  Miss 
Campbell,  with  a  puzzled  look.  "It  would  be  improper 
to  go  on. " 

' l  Are  those  brown  things  the  sign  of  a  secret  society, 
too,  Mr.  Rakeman?"  asked  Miss  Leigh,  looking  at  the 
table  on  which  Miss  Campbell  had  laid  the  cap.  "Boxing 
gloves  !  Do  teach  me  how  to  use  them, "  and  springing  up, 
she  buried  one  little  bunch  of  fives  in  the  recesses  of  a 
pugnacious  glove. 

The  gallant  Southron  helped  his  pupil  arm  herself,  and 


Fair  Harvard.  221 

with  what  to  an  observer  seemed  over-care,  placed  her 
hands  in  position,  and  taught  her  to  poise  herself,  to  draw 
back  her  head  from  the  blow,  and  to  strike  from  the 
shoulder. 

"  Miss  Campbell,  will  not  you  be  umpire?"  he  asked, 
drawing  on  the  gloves  himself,  and  challenging  his  fair  foe 
to  mortal  combat. 

"I'll  hold  the  bottle  and  sponge  for  Miss  Leigh,"  cried 
Wentworth.  ' '  Mrs.  Campbell,  you  will  do  as  much  for 
Rakeman,  I  am  sure,"  and  he  passed  a  champagne  bottle 
to  the  startled  but  good  natured  matron.  "Miss  Camp 
bell,  you  give  the  word. " 

Rakeman,  as  Wentworth  spoke,  turned  his  head  from 
Miss  Leigh  towards  him  for  a  moment,  when  suddenly  the 
treacherous  Amazon  unchained  the  beauty  and  terror  of 
her  arm,  and  Rakeman's  nob  received  a  declaration  of  war, 
and  a  fierce  attack  at  the  same  moment. 

"Victory!"  exclaimed  Miss  Leigh,  for  women  have  no 
principle  and  enjoy  a  triumph,  however  won. 

"A  foul  blow!"  said  Wentworth.  "You  must  pay 
Rakeman  a  forfeit  by  all  the  rules  of  the  prize  ring." 

"I  have  only  a  glove,"  replied  the  blushing  Penthesilea. 
"  I  thought  all  means  were  fair  in  war  as  in  love." 

"Why,  Mr.  Saulsbury !"  exclaimed  Miss  Campbell, 
who  had  been  looking  over  his  books,  while  Rakeman  and 
Miss  Leigh  were  settling  upon  the  terms  of  peace.  ' '  Are 
you  suchan  admirer  of  Byron?  here  are  three  copies  of  his 
works  ?" 

"I  think  him  a  great  genius,  but  a  man  of  little  educa- 


222  Fair  Harvard. 

tion.  His  selfish  moral  nature  prevented  him  from  being 
objective,  or  he  would  have  been  almost  as  great  a  poet  as 
Shakespeare. " 

"How  can  you  think  Byron  a  genius  ?"  said  Miss  Leigh, 
' '  He  was  such  a  brute  to  his  wife. " 

"Don't  you  think  his  influence  is  as  good  as  Thack 
eray's?"  asked  Wentworth.  "They  both  found  the  world 
very  hollow,  and  both  beat  the  devil's  tattoo  upon  it ;  but 
Byron,  at  least,  made  it  sound  grand  and  impressive.  It 
was  very  wrong  for  him  to  fall  in  love  with  every  handsome 
woman  he  met ;  but  you  all  expect  it,  and  feel  offended 
with  us  if  we  do  not  do  it ;  is  not  that  true,  Mrs.  Campbell  ?" 

"How  should  I  know?"  answered  Mrs.  Campbell,  who 
still  retained  much  of  her  early  beauty,  and  was  not  dis 
pleased  at  the  inquiry.  "I'm  afraid,  girls,"  she  added, 
"that  it  is  time  for  us  to  start.  I  don't  know,  Amy,  what 
your  mother  would  think  of  me,  if  she  knew  on  what  a 
romp  we  had  been. " 

"  Who  would  have  thought,"  said  Miss  Campbell,  "tha. 
you,  mother,  who  are  the  most  respectable  woman  in  Bos 
ton,  would  ever  be  a— — what  do  you  call  it,  Mr.  Sauls- 
bury  ?  a  bottle-holder  in  a  prize-fight. " 

"Do  not  hurry;  you  have  plenty  of  time  to  catch  the 
last  car,  I  wish  I  could  urge  you  to  stay  longer,"  said 
Wentworth,  as  with  Rakeman  he  helped  the  ladies  put  on 
their  cloaks  ;  after  which  they  walked  to  the  cars,  and  rode 
into  town. 

"I  will  tell  you  a  secret,"  said  Miss  Campbell  to  oui 
hero,  as  they  drew  near  her  house  ;  "  it  is  only  known  to  a 


Fair  Harvard.  223 

few  dozen  of  my  girl  friends  :  you  must  promise  not  to  tell 
it.  I  am  engaged  to  Mr.  Otis :  it  is  coming  out  next 
week  when  he  returns  from  the  South.  He  said  he  knew 
you. " 

' '  I  congratulate  him, "  replied  Wentworth,  whose  face 
did  not  seem  to  echo  his  words. 

On  reaching  the  house,  Mrs.  Campbell  asked  the  two 
boys  to  come  in,  but  they  excused  themselves,  and  walked 
together  to  the  favorite  haunt  of  men  of  wit  in  breezy  Bos 
ton,  where  they  spent  the  night. 

* '  My  dear  Van, "  Wentworth  wrote  his  friend  the  next 
morning,  "  I  feel  blue  to-day,  and  write  to  you  in  order  to 
cheer  myself  up.  Ever  since  your  banishment,  I  have 
done  nothing  but  study  and  write  :  I  am  editor  of  the  Har 
vard  Magazine,  you  know,  with  Gowan  and  Hayward,  and 
have  to  furnish  an  article  a  month,  which  is  hard  work. 

' '  Rakeman  and  I  were  elected  last  week  into  the  Sau 
sage  Club,  where  I  now  spend  an  hour  every  day  after  din 
ner,  reading :  we  have  a  capital  library.  They  called  on 
us  for  a  speech  at  the  initiation,  and  Rake  made  a  very 
good  one,  in  which  he  said  that  a  gentleman  was  a  man 
who  used  more  water  on  the  outside  of  his  body, 
and  less  on  the  inside,  than  any  other  man ;  a  sentiment 
which  was  received  with  great  favor. 

11  The  whole  college  for  a  month  past  has  been  dedicated 
to  music  :  the  dancing  fiddle,  the  cathartic  trumpet,  the 
pious  harp,  have  been  all  tuning  themselves  for  the  Glee- 
Club  concert,  which  was  given  last  evening. 

' '  Most  animals,  even  women,  when  dead,  are  silent ;  the 


224  Fair  Harvard. 

cat  alone,  who  makes  night  musical  in  life,  in  death, 
though  with  a  different  organ,  prolongs  his  strains.  I 
wrenched  four  tickets  from  Rake  and  Ayres,  which  I  sent 
to  Miss  Campbell,  and  in  the  evening  I  escorted  her  with 
her  mother  and  cousin,  Miss  Leigh,  to  the  concert.  I  in 
troduced  Rake  to  them,  and  he  became  very  sweet  on  Miss 
Leigh.  As  we  were  going  to  our  room,  where  I  had  or 
dered  a  spread,  Miss  Campbell  and  I  got  separated  from 
the  others  and  reached  it  some  time  before  them.  The 
girl  perched  herself  in  the  old  window-seat,  where  she 
looked  very  pretty.  After  leaving  the  ladies  at  their  house 
in  town,  Rake  and  I  went  to  Parker's,  where  your  health 
was  not  forgotten. 

"Nothing  else  of  great  public  interest  has  happened, 
except  that  a  few  days  since  some  silly  Sophs  set  off  some 
fireworks  in  our  favorite  professor's  room. 

' '  By  the  way,  I  never  wrote  you  about  the  Mock  Parts ; 
you  had  three  or  four. 


Are  not  these  woods 


More  free  from  peril  than  the  envious  court?' 

was  one  of  them,  I  remember.  I  think  that  these  personali 
ties  are  low,  don't  you,  and  should  like  to  see  the  custom 
abolished. 

"Do  write  me  a  description  of  your  place  of  exile,  and 
of  the  people  you  are  with  ;  you  have  never  told  me  any 
thing  about  them ;  and  tell  me  how  you  stand  the  cold  in 
Siberia,  now  that  winter  has  come.  Oblige  me  by  giving 
my  love  to  all  the  pretty  girls  whom  you  meet,  and  believe 
me  always  your  sincere  friend, 

"  WENTWORTH  SAULSBURY.  " 


Fair  Harvard.  225 

"My  dear  chum,"  replied  Van's  letter  a  few  days  after, 
"  Your  favor  of  the  —  came  duly  to  hand,  as  our  worthy 
governors  write.  I  weep  at  its  contents,  and  the  reports  I 
hear  concerning  thee.  Grievous  complaints  are  abroad ; 
'tis  rumored  that  thou  hast  become  a  dreamer,  a  dig,  an 
editor.  Villainous  company,  'tis  said,  thou  consortest  with  ; 
scrubs,  who  know  not  the  brush  ;  theologs  who  make  long 
prayers  ;  once  'twas  whispered — my  hair  whitening  at  the 
tale — thou  wast  seen  walking  with  a  law-student. 

"And  yet  there  is  a  virtuous  man,  whom  I  have  often 
noted  in  thy  company  ;  a  man  with  a  fine  leg,  a  pleasing 
eye,  and  a  most  noble  carriage  :  and,  now  I  remember  me, 
his  name  is  Van  Courtland.  He  knows  how  to  handle  the 
ribbons,  and  to  lead  the  mazy  dance :  he  is  skilled  to  blow 
the  purple  rings,  to  mix  the  stealthy  punch,  to  strike  the 
ivory  ball.  There  is  virtue  in  that  man,  or  he  deceiveth 
me.  Keep  with  him,  you  are  safe — banish  him,  banish 
hope. 

"You  ask  me  to  give  you  a  description  of  Stockbridge.  It 
is  a  beautiful  place,  even  in  winter,  and  I  have  been  thank 
ful  to  the  Faculty  ever  since  I  came  here  for  my  suspension. 
The  society  is  as  agreeable  as  the  scenery.  Every  other 
person  you  meet  here  is,  to  be  sure,  as  in  Boston,  a  genius  ; 
but  as  they  think  that  a  member  of  Harvard  College  must 
be  also  a  genius,  and  as  I  am  at  no  pains  to  undeceive 
them,  we  get  along  bravely  together. 

' '  I  am  living  in  a  pleasant  house  set  back  from  the  road, 
surrounded  by  a  dozen  acres  of  land,  and  shielded  from  the 
sun  or  wind  by  fine  old  trees.  My  teacher,  who  is,  as  you 
know,  a  clergyman  of  reputation,  is  an  admirable  scholar, 


226  Fair  Harvard. 

and  the  most  courteous  man  in  the  world.  He  has,  also, 
a  most  charming  wife,  who  is  surrounded  by  a  '  brood  of 
darlings/  with  lovelier  faces  than  Raphael  ever  stole  from 
heaven. 

"I  wish  you  could  look  in  upon  us  to-night.  The 
family  gathering-place  is  a  large,  comfortable  room,  hung 
with  a  few  portraits,  and  a  painting  of  a  deer  killed  by  the 
parson's  grandfather.  A  snow  storm  is  blowing  without, 
and  we  are  all  at  home.  A  hale  old  black  servant,  who 
has  been  a  great  many  years  in  the  family,  has  just  brought 
in  some  logs  with  which  the  hearth  is  blazing  merrily.  A 
sweet  child  with  motherly  ways  is  seated  before  the  fire, 
and  whispering  to  her  doll  the .  stories,  which  her  dry  old 
crony,  the  andiron,  has  been  telling  her.  The  poor  doll 
bruised  his  finger  badly  this  morning,  and  a  piece  of  mus 
lin  dipt  in  arnica,  has  been  carefully  wrapped  about  it. 
Nearer  the  fire  basks  a  gray  tabby  cat,  with  a  face  of  great 
benignity,  that  breathes  a  benediction  over  the  scene.  The 
mistress  of  the  house  is  knitting  a  pair  of  mittens,  and  lis 
tening  to  a  golden  little  boy,  who  with  tears  in  his 
eyes  is  reciting  to  her  the  ballad  of  the  Children  in  the 
Wood.  That  holy  look  of  a  true  mother's  face  !  How  it 
steals  into  the  heart  like  a  silent  prayer  !  Pshaw  !  old  boy, 
I  believe  my  principles  are  being  undermined  by  these 
people  :  they  make  me  fear  that  I  am  at  heart  no  better 
than  a  domestic  man. 

1 '  I  shall  go  to  New  York  in  a  few  days  :  the  pure  and 
sacred  influence  of  that  New  Jerusalem  will  restore  my 
moral  tone.  I  have,  however,  a  strong  presentiment  that 


Fair  Harvard.  227 

I  shall  be  taken  physically  sick  there,  and  forced  by  the 
advice  of  a  physician  to  remain  in  the  city  the  rest  of  the 

term. 

< 'Hoping  against  hope,  that  you  will   not   deteriorate 

more  during  my  absence, 

"I  remain,  till  death  do  us  part,  your  friend, 

"SCHUYLER  VAN  COURTLAND. 

"P.S. Rake  sent  me  a  bale  of  perique  the  other  day  : 

may  his  sins,  which  are  many,  be  forgiven  him  for  this 
charity. 

"Ata.— Don't  try  to  palm  off  your  remorse  after  a  drink 
ing-bout,  as  grief  for  my  absence." 


CHAPTER  XV. 

"  Sed  nil  dulcius  est,  bene  quam  munita  tenere 
Edita  doctrina  sapientum  templa  serena, 
Despicere  unde  queas  alios  passimque  videre 
Errare  atque  viam  palantis  quserere  vitse." 

"  Eugepse  :   Thalem  talento  non  emam  Milesium: 
Nam  [pol]  ad  sapientiam  huius  nimius  nugator  fuit." 

|IME  was,  Wentworth/'  said  Van  one  day,  throw 
ing  himself  back  in  the  old  arm-chair  of  the 
Sausage  Club,  to  which  he  had  been  chosen  on 
his  return  from  exile  ;  "time  was,  Wentworth,  when  your 
laugh  outroared  the  North  wind,  and  your  appetite  shook 
the  granaries  ;  but  thee  now,  nor  the  talker  pipe  delights, 
nor  the  athlete  ale,  nor  the  oyster,  his  own  dish,  nor  the 
coxcomb  champagne,  nor  the  hero  brandy ;  and  thou,  who 
wast  wont  to  feed  on  all  things,  art  become  thyself  a  dish 
for  brooding  melancholy,  pinning  thy  soul  as  a  bob  to  the 
kite  of  a  woman's  vanity. " 

Wentworth  had  during  the  term  been  often  rallied  by 
Van  for  his  fits  of  despondency,  and  this  afternoon  had 
confessed  that  the  cause  of  his  low  spirits  was  that  primum 
mobile  of  evil,  a  woman. 


Fair  Harvard.  229 

' '  '  You  apprehend  a  world  of  figures, '  Van, "  he  replied 
pleasantly,  as  his  chum  ended.  "1  felt  sure  from  her 
manner  that  she  fancied  me  ;  and  to  flirt  with  me  the  very 
night  she  told  me  she  was  engaged ;  but  I  don't  believe  she 
would  try  to  make  me  fall  in  love  with  her  merely  to  gratify 
her  vanity,  do  you  ?" 

Cupid  is  both  a  Fury  and  a  Momus,  and  Van  was  on 
the  laughing  side  of  the  rascally  Janus. 

"I  have  read  of  women  guilty  of  such  crimes,"  he  re 
joined,  ''though  I  am  glad  to  say  I  never  met  one  ;"  and 
the  spoilt  child  of  fashion  stroked  a  dangerous  pair  of 
whiskers  he  had  grown,  and  gave  his  friend  a  quizzical 
look. 

"I  remember  once  telling  her/'  said  Wentworth,  "that 
no  woman  could  make  me  fall  in  love  with  her  against  my 
will,  and  seeing  a  look  of  power  flash  from  her  eyes." 

' '  Telling  her  what  ?"  exclaimed  Van.  * '  Pique  a  woman, 
and  not  know  she  would  revenge  herself :  I  don't  blame 
her.  If  I  were  you,  I  would  learn  from  my  enemy  :  show 
her  that  you  are  her  master  at  her  own  weapons;  that 
your  self-command  is  more  perfect ;  that  your  wit  is  more 
dangerous  than  hers.  Love  in  a  woman  is  a  mixture  of 
passion  and  fear ;  the  girl  will  soon  fall  in  love  with  you, 
if  she  likes  you  already  :  she'll  be  all  the  more  apt  to  do  so, 
now  that  she  is  engaged  ;  you  know  you're  a  good  looking 
fellow  enough,  and  that  after  all  is  the  main  thing." 

"  How  can  a  man  wish  to  give  pain  to  a  woman  he  loves, 
Van  ?  I  can't  think  that  you  are  in  earnest.  I  shall  throw 
myself  into  study  and  exercise  and  try  to  forget  her." 


230  Fair  Harvard. 

"There  is  philosophy  in  thee,  shepherd,"  answered 
Van,  more  seriously.  "But  if  love  some  fine  day  doesn't 
run  off  with  your  wits,  before  that  lean  domestic  can  shut 
the  door,  the  girl  can't  be  very  fascinating.  Philosophy  does 
very  well  to  lock  the  door  of  the  empty  stable,  or  to  prove 
'  no  horse/  or  'spavin,'  but  at  bottom  he's  a  quack.  Still, 
if  you  want  to  take  up  the  line  of  forgetting  her,  read  Mon 
taigne,  Thackeray,  and  such  writers  ;  they'll  draw  the  teeth 
from  your  grief  for  you. " 

"I  hate  your  emasculated  skeptics,"  returned  Wentworth  ; 
"It  is  better  to  be  the  slave  of  a  noble  passion,  than  to  be 
master  of  such  puny  ideals  as  they  offer  you ;  such  men 
are  fit  neither  for  heaven  nor  elsewhere. " 

"That  third  place  is  the  home  for  me,  too,  old  boy," 
said  Van,  blowing  a  ring  from  his  meerschaum  :  "  A  region 
where  the  fierce  heat  of  the  infernal  shore  is  softened  to  a 
genial  temperament,  and  the  frigid  virtue  of  heaven  mel 
lowed  to  a  more  kindly  warmth  :  that's  what  this  world 
would  be,  were  it  not  for  you  puritanical  fellows,  who 
make  such  a  pother  with  your  rights  and  reforms.  But  I 
forgot  to  ask  the  name  of  the  lucky  man,.  Mr.  Otis?  I  used 
to  know  him  in  Paris  ;  he's  an  uncommonly  good  match, 
too.  He  used  to  be  a  great  friend  of  Celeste  Coralie  ; 
you've  heard  of  her,  that  famous  dancer ;  in  fact  she  left 
the  stage  to  live  with  him  ;  I  wonder  where  she  is  now ; 
those  French  women  are  the  devil  sometimes." 

"Miss  Campbell  can't  know  know  of  this,"  said  Went 
worth,  shocked  by  the  careless  manner  of  his  friend. 

"No,  I  don't  suppose  she  does  ;  there's  nothing  wrong  in 


Fair  Harvard.  231 

it  of  course,  old  boy  ;  purely  Platonic  ;  but  men  don't  like 
to  mention  these  neo-platonisms  to  their  fiancees ;  women 
have  so  little  faith  in  the  spirituality  of  their  own  sex  :  but 
Miss  Campbell's  dear  mamma  has  heard So  you've  cho 
sen  me  into  the  Harvard  boat,  have  you  ?"  he  added,  see 
ing  that  his  friend  was  annoyed.  "After  all,  hard  work, 
though  irrational,  has  a  certain  pleasure  in  it.  Feel  of  that 
arm,  old  boy,"  and  Van  pulled  up  his  sleeve,  and  dis 
played  an  arm  as  hard  as  ivory,  and  bound  with  curving 
muscles  from  the  shoulder  to  the  wrist :  for  Van,  though  he 
preached  laziness,  was  driven  by  force  of  his  fine  constitu 
tion  into  exercise. 

"Come  and 'take  tea  with  us  to-night,  Van,"  said  Went- 
worth,  after  paying  his  respects  to  his  friend's  biceps.  "It 
is  Saturday  night,  and  only  Rake  and  Ayres  will  be  there. 
I  am  going  to  meet  Hayward  at  the  post-office  at  six ;  it's 
nearly  that  now ;  I  have  seen  a  great  deal  of  Hayward  this 
year,  and  the  more  I  see  of  him,  the  better  I  like  him. 
We  had  an  editors'  meeting  yesterday ;  what  a  comical 
genius  Gowan  is?  Last  night,  I  asked  him  whether  he 
trusted  a  certain  man.  *  I  don't  think/  he  answered,  '  that 
he  would  steal  a  grizzly  bear,  or  run  away  with  a  red  hot 
stove,  but  I  can't  say  that  I  have  absolute  confidence  in 
him.'  He  declares  that  he  is  going  to  make  the  Harvard 
Magazine  the  best  periodical  in  the  world." 

"  If  you  wish,  Wentworth,'' said  Van,  as  the  two  boys 
issued  into  the  street,  and  strolled  towards  the  square ; 
"You  can  attend  a  meeting  of  the  B.  H.  society,  which 
will  be  held  in  our  rooms,  to-morrow  night." 


232  Fair  Harvard. 

"  Many  thanks,  Van  :  it  is  a  privilege  to  be  allowed  to 
remain  in  one's  own  room.  What  is  the  B,  H.  society  ?  I 
never  heard  of  it." 

"You  need  not  be  ashamed  of  that,  old  boy,"  replied 
Van.  ' '  It  has  only  been  in  existence  two  days  :  in  fact  it 
can  scarcely  be  said  to  be  more  than  an  idea,  but  it  is  an 
idea  pregnant  with  nectar  and  ambrosia.  The  B.  H. 
Club,  whose  object  is  social  rather  than  literary,  is  at 
present  composed  of  six  of  the  greatest  swells  in  our 
class  :  every  week,  however,  a  Freshman  of  wealth  and 
position  is  elected  into  it,  who  is  obliged  by  custom  to  fur 
nish  us  with  a  magnificent  supper,  onthe  night  of  his  initia 
tion." 

"You  are  indeed  a  magician,  Van,"  said  Wentworth. 
"You  rub  the  lamp  of  your  reason,  utter  a  talismanic  word, 
and  lo  !  a  sumptuous  feast  spreads  itself  before  you." 

' '  The  joke  of  it  is,  Wentworth,  that  each  of  these  foxes, 
when  he  finds  that  his  tail  has  been  cut  off,  will  wear  it  as 
a  great  feather  in  his  cap  before  his  fellows,  and  make  them 
eager  to  gain  the  same  honor. " 

The  boys  had  now  reached  the  Post-office,  where  Hay- 
ward  joined  them.  Hamilton's  old  friend  was  a  type  of  the 
worthiest  class  of  men  whom  New  England  breeds.  The 
son  of  a  farmer  near  Worcester,  he  had  under  every  disad 
vantage  fitted  himself  for  college,  and  with  the  sum  of  two 
hundred  dollars  in  his  pocket,  entered  Harvard.  After  six » 
months  he  had  gained  a  scholarship,  and  had  since  then  sup 
ported  himself  by  scholarships  and  teaching.  During  the 
Freshman  and  Sophomore  years,  Hayward  saw  little  of  his 


Fair  Harvard.  233 

class,  and  was  spoken  of  as  a  "dig,"  a  man  devoted  to 
study,  always  an  unpopular  character  in  American  col 
leges.  The  third  year,  however,  when  the  college-boy  de 
velops  into  something  very  like  a  man,  and  brains  are  more 
prized,  Hayward  mixed  more  with  his  class-mates,  and 
became  as  much  liked  as  he  had  been  always  respected. 
It  is  the  facility  which  New  England  affords  to  men  like 
Hayward  to  educate  themselves,  that  gives  her  her  intellec 
tual  superiority  over  the  rest  of  America. 

Wentworth  and  his  friends,  on  entering  the  supper-room, 
found  Ayres  seated  in  state,  with  Gowan  opposite  him, 
whom,  now  that  he  had  achieved  greatness,  Ayres  often 
honored  with  an  invitation  to  the  club-table. 

"I  am  preparing  an  article  for  the  Harvard  Magazine/' 
remarked  Gowan,  shortly,  "to  do  away  with  the  study  of 
the  classics  in  our  American  colleges." 

"The  study  of  the  classics,"  replied  Hayward,  "is  the 
very  object  for  which  colleges  are  founded,  to  preserve  the 
Past— 

"I  don't  believe,"  interjected  Gowan,  "that  colleges 
should  be  the  mummy  pits  of  old  truths  ;  they  ought  to  be 
the  centres  of  modern  thought." 

"On  the  contrary,"  rejoined  Hayward,  "nothing  is  so 
good  for  any  country,  and  especially  for  one  like  our  own, 
in  which  all  influences  tend  to  concentrate  the  mind  on 
the  present,  as  to  have  schools  in  which  the  two  great  clas 
sical  models  are  held  up  for  our  study.  It  is  a  great  gain 
to  the  world  to  have  another  ideal,  not  antagonistic,  but 
different  to  the  Christian  ideal  offered  it.  You  find  in 


234  Fair  Harvard. 

Greek  literature  alone,  an  ideal  of  man  harmoniously 
developing  himself:  nothing  stimulates  Christianity  so 
much  as  this,  and  prevents  its  becoming  a  religion  of  blind 
authority,  to  crush  out  reason,  and  change  its  own  truths 
into  barren  letters." 

"I  myself  don't  believe  in  the  Christian  ideal  any  more 
than  the  Greek/' said  Gowan  ;  "I  think  Modern  Times 
can  give  us  ideals  superior  to  any  of  the  Greeks  or  Jews. " 

"What !  are  you  going  to  overthrow  Christianity  as  well 
as  the  classics  by  your  article  ?"  asked  Ayres,  sadly,  and  for 
a  brief  moment  ceased  to  absorb  toast,  for  the  warbler  had 
experienced  religion,  and  was  keenly  alive  to  any  danger 
which  threatened  it. 

"Wait  until  better  ideals  are  given  us  by  modem  times," 
exclaimed  Wentworth,  "before  you  ask  us  to  give  up 
our  old  ones.  It  does  not  seem  to  me  that  Thomas  Car- 
lyle  or  Auguste  Comte  are  prophets  direct  from  God. " 

"  I  don't  believe  in  the  study  of  the  classics  as  they  are 
studied  here, "  said  Van.  ' '  They  should  make  us  study  the 
Greek  and  Latin  literatures,  not  the  grammars." 

"It  is  the  stupid  system  of  recitations  for  four  hours  a 
day,"  said  Hayward,  "that  stultifies  both  college  officers 
and  students.  The  students  are  obliged  to  take  about 
twice  as  long  to  show  how  little  they  know  as  to  learn  that 
little.  If  a  man  after  every  half  hour's  hoeing  were  to  be  ex 
amined  as  to  how  much  he  had  done,  his  day's  work 
would  not  be  worth  much.  Besides,  these  recitations  cut  up 
the  day,  and  take  the  soul  out  of  a  man." 

"What  I  most  object  to,"  said  Van,  "is  that  deductions 


Fair  Harvard.  235 

should  be  made  from  your  rank,  on  account  of  your  con 
duct  ;  I  don't  see  what  smoking,  or  standing  on  the  grass, 
has  to  do  with  my  rank  as  a  scholar  :  and  to  state,  as  they 
do,  that  rank  depends  on  scholarship  alone,  is  to  state  what 
is  not  true  :  if  it  were/'  he  added,  good  humoredly,  "  my 
great  talents  would  place  me  in  the  first  half  of  the  class,  I 
am  convinced." 

"That  would  be  rough  on  you,  Robin:  it  would  just 
push  you  into  the  second  half/''  said  Wentworth,  to  the 
warbler,  who  held  the  hazardous  position  of  the  last  man 
in  the  first  half  of  the  class. 

"The  American  college  system,"  he  added,  "secures 
one  of  the  virtues  of  the  bed  of  Procrustes  ;  though  it  can 
not  expand  a  fool  to  the  stature  of  mediocrity,  it  shows 
great  skill  in  cutting  down  those  heads  which  might  over 
top  their  fellows.  The  remedy  for  the  evil  is  so  easy,  too  ; 
abolish  the  recitation  system,  and  substitute  for  it  fair  writ 
ten  competitive  examinations,  to  excite  emulation,  and 
short  familiar  lectures  to  point  out  the  books,  methods  of 
study,  and  whatever  the  student  cannot  readily  discover  for 
himself.  Every  University  which  has  adopted  this  system 
has  grown  famous  for  good  scholarship,  and  not  one  with 
out  it." 

"Harvard  College,"  said  Gowan,  "is  looked  upon  by 
its  students  as  a  gladiatorial  school,  and  by  its  officers  as 
an  amateur  police  station." 

' '  Take  care  what  you  say, "  interposed  Van,  ' '  there  are 
two  boating  men  here,  and  you  may  get  into  a  row. " 

"If,"  continued   Wentworth,  "we   had   the   wit  of  our 


236  Fair  Harvard. 

fathers,  who  founded  this  college  almost  before  they  had 
pitched  their  tents  in  the  wilderness,  we  should  build  it  up 
to  be  a  great  University,  and  endow  it  with  money  enough 
to  educate  all  the  men  and  women  of  talents  in  the  coun 
try  :  we  should  make  it  not  a  place  for  boys  to  be  drilled 
in,  and  tutors  to  air  their  brief  authority,  but  the  centre  of 
American  thought,  at  which  scholars  and  students,  young 
and  old,  would  gather  to  give  and  receive  inspiration.  It 
is  only  by  such  a  union  that  a  great  literature  can  be  pro 
duced  ;  a  man,  however  gifted,  cannot  grow  without  sym 
pathy  :  Shakespeare  himself  would  have  been  dwarfed,  if  he 
had  not  lived  among  his  peers." 

"  '  'Tis  oh,  the  poor  vork  'us  bye,'  " 

sang  Rakeman,  rushing  into  the  room,  and  looking 
anxiously  about  the  supper  table.  "One  such  man  as 
you,  Robin,"  added  the  poor  Lazarus,  gleaning  a  few 
crumbs  after  the  warbler,  ''is  more  ominous  than  the  sev 
en  lean-fleshed  kine  of  Pharaoh." 

"  You  get  off  more  poor  jokes,  Rake,  than  any  old  al 
manac,"  retorted  Ayres,  not  over  pleased  at  the  compari 
son. 

' '  I  took  tea  with  Professor  Robinson  last  night, "  re 
marked  Hay  ward,  after  peace  had  been  made.  "We  had 
a  long  conversation,  about  the  best  course  to  follow  in  the 
study  of  history,  and  constitutional  government.  He  said 
France  was  the  country  whose  history  one  should  study 
first,  as  being  historically  the  most  central  country  in  mod 
ern  Europe,  and  the  only  one  which  had  never  been  in  a 
state  of  coma,  from  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  until 


Fair  Harvard.  237 

the  present  day.  In  speaking  of  the  different  kinds  of 
government,  he  said  that  England  had  received  from  the 
world  the  same  award  of  merit,  which  was  made  to  Thucy- 
dides,  that  every  one  gave  her  the  second  place  after  his 
own  country." 

"I  wish  we  had  an  aristocracy  here/'  said  Van,  "we 
need  a  strong  government  to  keep  down  the  modocracy  ; 
no  man  can  live  long  in  New  York  city,  and  still  believe 
in  a  democracy.'7 

"No  one,"  returned  Wentworth  warmly,  "can  live  long 
in  New  England,  and  not  believe  in  a  republic.  A  nation, 
in  choosing  its  form  of  government,  should  aim  always  at 
the  truest  ideal ;  then  all  progress  is  a  real  progress:  on 
any  other  plan,  the  more  you  build,  the  more  you  have  to 
pull  down  in  the  end,  unless  you  become  fossilized. 
Every  one  admits  that  intrinsically,  the  principle  of  choice 
is  more  worthy  of  an  intelligent  people,  than  the  principle 
of  birth  :  the  means  we  adopt  to  put  the  theory  into  prac 
tice  may  not  be  the  best,  but  the  principle  itself  is  a  true 
one,  and  should  be  carried  out  boldly  without  regard  to 
sex  or  color  or  nationality. " 

"  I  don't  believe  in  the  divine  right  of  voting,"  said  Van. 
"What  right  have  two  fools,  merely  because  they  know 
how  to  count,  or  can  get  some  one  to  count  for  them,  to 
vote  down  one  of  us  ?  What  right  has  any  one  to  any 
thing,  except  to  do  what  he  is  fitted  for  ?" 

"The  right  of  rights,"  said  Gowan,  "the  right  to  be 
educated,  to  learn  for  what  he  is  by  nature  fitted  ;  the  man 
whom  birth  seems  to  have  designed  to  be  your  footman,  God 


238  Fair  Harvard. 

may  have  designed  to  be  your  master,  and  he  has  a  right 
to  know  it." 

''They  do  know  it  in  New  York,"  said  Van,  "without 
any  education.  But  seriously,  what  has  our  homoeopathic 
system  of  education  done  for  us  ?  The  literature  of  a  country 
is  the  best  index  of  its  growth,  and  what  national  literature 
have  we  worthy  of  the  name  ?  Do  we  not  steal  all  our  ideas 
and  books  from  England,  swindle  her  writers  out  of  their 
just  pay,  and  abuse  her  roundly  into  the  bargain  ?" 

"America  has  one  excuse  for  her  want  of  a  literature," 
said  Wentworth,  "that  she  has  to  import  her  Past.  An 
American  cannot  merely  open  his  mind,  and  let  the  golden- 
grained  current  of  historical  and  mythical  times  flow 
through  it.  If  you  take  from  the  poets  of  Europe  of  this 
century,  the  thoughts  they  have  breathed  in  with  the  stories 
of  their  childhood,  or  which  have  sprung  from  their  countries' 
history  or  traditions,  how  little  would  you  leave  them  ? 
Here  we  have  no  Mother  Goose  and  Robin  Goodfellow  to 
whisper  their  legends  in  the  ears  of  our  children  as  they 
play  about  the  chimney  corner.  We  have  no  ballads  of 
good  King  Arthur,  or  brave  Roland,  to  lead  away  our 
thoughts  to  the  enchanted  regions  of  romance,  where  the 
Muses  love  to  dwell.  There  does  not  move  before  us,  as 
before  the  Greeks,  the  gorgeous  panorama  of  an  heroic 
age,  made  luminous  by  poetic  genius,  now  glittering  with 
the  pomp  and  circumstance  of  the  Trojan  war,  now  sha 
dowing  forth  in  darker  colors  the  woes  of  the  house  of 
CEdipus,  now  glowing  with  the  splendor  of  Olympus  and 
the  cloud-compelling  God/' 


Fair  Harvard.  239 

"We,  certainly/'  said  Gowan,  "  make  as  much  as  we  can 
of  what  history  we  have.  Bancroft  devotes  a  volume  to  a 
campaign  of  Captain  John  Smith  at  the  head  of  an  army 
of  two  whites  and  one  friendly  squaw. " 

"The  greatest  misfortune/'  said  Hay  ward,  "that  is  pro 
duced  by  the  want  of  a  Past  and  of  a  literature,  is  that 
owing  to  this  want  we  have  no  strong  national  unity ;  in 
proportion  as  an  American  becomes  educated,  he  becomes 
denationalized  ;  his  thoughts  and  feelings  centre  in  France, 
or  England,  or  Italy ;  he  ceases  to  be  an  American,  and 
consequently  ceases  to  exert  any  influence  upon  his  coun 
try,  or  to  receive  any  impulse  from  it. " 

"Still,"  replied  Wentworth,  with  earnestness,  "the  ad 
vantages  of  our  position  far  outweigh  its  evils.  The  Past 
sits«upon  the  neck  of  Europe  like  the  Old  Man  of.the  Sea ; 
it  has  bound  her  hand  and  foot  with  its  traditions  ;  it  has 
burdened  her  with  the  husks  of  worn-out  truths ;  it  has 
bred  up  standing  armies  to  prey  upon  her  entrails ;  it  has 
set  her  religion  and  reason  at  war  together ;  it  has  planted 
upon  her  head  a  nobility  like  a  crown  of  thorns. 

'  •  America  is  not  the  offspring  of  the  night ;  she  was  born 
when  the  human  mind  had  awakened  from  its  long  sleep  ; 
in  her  infancy  she  strangled  church  and  caste ;  her  society 
honors,  or  condemns  every  one  upon  his  own  merits  ;  her 
law  limits  the  freedom  of  the  individual  only  where  it  en 
croaches  upon  the  liberty  of  his  neighbor ;  her  religion  is 
the  spontaneous  tribute  of  the  human  soul  to  its  God. " 

"In  her  charity  she  has  opened  her  doors  to  the  oppressed 
of  every  nation  ;  like  the  serpent  of  Moses,  her  flag  has 


240  Fair  Harvard. 

been  lifted  up,  and  to  it  the  sick  and  wounded  from  the 
four  corners  of  the  earth  have  come  flocking.  If  the  repub 
lic  perish,  she  will  sink,  borne  down  by  the  multitudes  who 
have  stretched  out  their  hands  to  her  for  aid  ;  if  she  perish, 
she  will  die  as  the  physician,  the  victim  of  diseases  caught 
in  the  dens  of  wretchedness  to  which  his  charity  has  led 
him.  If  she  perish,  may  she  so  perish  !  But  who  of  us 
has  any  fears  for  our  country  ?  Under  the  influence  of 
freedom,  and  the  discipline  of  our  schools,  the  children  of 
the  foreigner  will  grow  worthy  of  their  adopted  home  ;  in 
time  we  shall  mould  these  different  nationalities  into  one  ; 
in  time  some  great  poet,  with  his  golden  numbers,  will  draw 
all  hearts  together  and  call  forth  from  our  mountains  and 
rivers  the  souls  that  lie  imprisoned  within  them  ;  or  a  great 
war  will  sweep  over  us  with  its  fiery  breath,  and  we  shall 
come  forth  from  its  trial  welded  into  a  nation. 

"In  times  past  three  great  republics  have  lighted  up  the 
pages  of  history,  the  Jewish,  Athenian,  the  Roman  ;  and  to 
these  three  republics  the  world  to-day  owes  all  that  it  has  of 
worth  ;  its  law,  its  mind,  its  soul. 

"Among  the  nations  of  modern  times,  America  has 
come  late  to  the  race  ;  but  she  is  the  child  of  the  Sun  ;  her 
feet  are  shod  with  the  wings  of  the  morning ;  her  veins  are 
alive  with  the  blood  of  her  sire  ;  wherever  she  moves,  she 
shakes  light,  liberty,  and  hope  from  her  locks  ;  she  shall 
not  be  last  at  the  goal.'" 

"By  Jove  !  fellows/'  exclaimed  Ayres,  looking  at  his 
watch,  and  springing  to  his  feet ;  "  I  have  a  special  engage 
ment  with  my  dentist  this  evening  ;  I'm  half  an  hour  late. " 


Fair  Harvard.  241 

"To  have  a  tooth  drawn?"  asked  Rakeman,  eagerly., 
and  a  look  of  hope  ran  around  the  table. 

''No,  to  have  a  new  tooth  set,"  replied  the  warbler, 
cheerily,  and  hurried  from  the  room. 

After  a  few  moments  of  silent  gloom,  his  friends  followed 
him. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

"Anna  soror,  qufe  me  suspensam  insomnia  terrentl 
Quis  novus  hie  nostris  successit  sedibus  hospes, 
Quern  sese  ore  ferens,  quam  forti  pectore  et  armis  1 
Credo  equidem,  nee  vana  fides,  genus  esse  deonun." 

'  Sunt  bona,  sunt  qusedam  mediocria,  sunt  mala  plura 
Qua;  legis  hie." 

'  Phaselus  ille,  quern  videtis,  hospites, 
Ait  fuisse  navium  celerrimus." 


I  AIR  readers,  this  chapter  has  been  written  for 
you ;  there  is  no  one  of  you,  I  know,  that 
does  not  love  the  arm  of  the  Hercules,  and 
will  not  be  eager  to  go  with  me  to  Worcester  to  see  the 
Great  Games. 

Wentworth  and  his  chum,  during  the  summer  months, 
had  spent  most  of  their  time  in  training  for  the  boat  race. 
O  study,  during  this  muscular  period,  we  regret  to  say 
they  took  but  little  heed  ;  and  perhaps  it  must  be  con 
fessed  that  at  all  times  athletes  and  prize-fighters  have  not 
been  the  Homers  and  Shakespeares  of  the  world.  Do  not 
frown,  my  pretty  readers  :  you,  I  know,  all  love  to  believe 
that  the  strong  arm  in  whose  embrace  you  would  be  so  pow 
erless,  is  but  the  symbol  of  a  mind  and  soul  equally  dan- 


Fair  Harvard.  243 

gerous ;  and  I  do  hate  to  undeceive  you  :  but  I  have 
learnt  from  your  own  sex,  by  long  intercourse,  to  speak  the 
truth  at  any  cost. 

Wentworth  had  thrown  himself  into  muscular  Chris 
tianity  in  the  hope  that  religion  and  absence  would  enable 
him  to  forget  the  woman  whom  he  had  loved  with  sudden 
passion.  A  vain  hope — the  absence  of  a  woman  we  love 
is  the  presence  of  an  ideal :  this  may  or  may  not  be  more 
charming  than  the  original ;  in  your  case,  my  dear  madam, 
I  am  sure  it  could  not  but  be  much  less  so  ;  still  it  is  gen 
erally  enough. 

Our  friend,  Van  Courtland,  as  good-natured  fat  gave 
place  to  surly  brawn,  groaned  for  his  lost  pleasures,  his 
wine  changed  to  beer  and  his  forbidden  cigars,  and  pro 
nounced  Muscular  Christianity  to  be  no  better  than  pagan 
ism.  Absolute  goods,  indeed,  Van  held  that  there  were 
but  three,  wine,  woman,  and  tobacco,  any  one  of  which, 
he  said,  led  one  to  the  devil :  but  even  Van,  though  he 
railed  at  his  lot,  viewed  with  secret  satisfaction  his  lessen 
ing  waist  and  growing  biceps. 

It  was  the  day  before  the  race  :  Van,  Wentworth,  Bow- 
yer,  Bilger,  Seaborn  and  Brandreth,  who  made  up  the  crew, 
were  at  dinner  at  the  Bay  State  House  in  Worchester  :  half 
the  college  was  chattering  around  them  :  the  oars  in  silence 
devoured  huge  "  shins  of  beef"  and  drained  off  goblets  of 
ale. 

"You  must  win  the  race  to-morrow,"  cried  Rakeman 
to  Wentworth,  ' '  I  have  staked  my  last  penny  on  you  :  if 
you  are  beaten,  I  shall  have  to  walk  to  Richmond  I" 


244  Fair  Harvard. 

"It  is  your  45  stroke  that  will  do  the  business,"  said 
our  old  acquaintance,  Morris.  ' '  Nothing  that  floats  can 
stand  that." 

"  Yale  has  won  the  first  game  of  chess  !"  exclaimed  Ayres, 
entering  the  room,  sweating  with  excitement. 

"Come,  sit  beside  me,  Robin,"  called  out  Rakeman, 
' '  and  tell  me  all  about  it.  It's  a  roasting  day ;  as  you 
melt,  old  boy,  you  draw  the  heat  from  me  very  pleas 
antly.  " 

"Suppose  we  see  what's  going  on  outside,"  said  Van  to 
his  chum,  finishing  dinner,  and  the  two  strolled  to  the  bil 
liard-room,  where  the  champion  game  was  being  played. 
Yale  was  twenty  points  ahead,  but  both  sides  were  playing 
well,  and  the  bets  ran  even.  Among  a  group  of  his  friends, 
in  another  part  of  the  room,  was  Gowan,  who  offered  to 
play  with  any  one  for  any  sum,  and  give  him  99  points  and 
discount.  "I  have  never,"  he  whispered  to  Wentworth  as 
he  came  up  to  him,  "played  a  game  of  billiards  in  my  life  ; 
but  if  I  once  hit  that  ball,  Heavens !  how  I  shall  make  it 
spin !"  A  flashily  dressed  gentleman  offered  to  take 
Gowan's  bet,  and  was  surprised  to  find  himself  passed  out 
of  the  room  with  a  staccato  movement  by  the  students. 

On  leaving  the  billiard-hall,  our  friends  met  a  band  of 
gentle  youth  pricking  over  the  town  in  search  of  adven 
ture. 

"Come,  fellows,  fall  in  '."ordered  Rakeman,  who,  armed 
with  a  billiard-cue,  had  taken  command  of  the  corps ;  but 
Van  and  Wentworth  passed  by  them  to  their  hotel,  where 
by  ten  o'clock  they  were  fast  asleep. 


Fair  Harvard.  245 

The  town,  however,  at  this  hour  was  just  beginning  to 
open  its  eyes.  The  streets  were  thronging  with  rollicking 
students  and  citizens  dumb  with  terror.  There  was 
Thumpum,  the  eminent  divine,  whose  large  arm  and  weak 
intellect  had  taught  him  the  doctrine  of  Muscular  Chris 
tianity.  Behind  him  were  two  brave  bucks  from  Grafton, 
who  had  come  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  great  world. 
Further  on  you  saw  a  group  of  Boston  gentlemen,  among 
whom  was  the  versatile  Pippins,  who  lent  their  sober  counte 
nances  to  the  jolly,  night.  Next  came  the  proprietor  of  a 
small  hotel,  beating  his  breast,  followed  by  two  servants 
bearing  a  rnutton.  In  an  evil  hour,  for  himself  and  his 
posterity,  he  had  contracted  to  board  a  training  crew  at  the 
usual  charge.  "I  have  fed  firemen!"  he  exclaims, 
' '  militiamen  !  alderman  !  but  these  students  !  famine  ! 
locusts  !  's  death  ! " 

Meanwhile,  Rakeman's  command  rolled  on,  swollen  by 
stragglers.  The  Southron  brandished  his  billiard-cue  be 
fore  them,  and  with  it  tested  panes  of  glass  and  ribs  of  in 
quisitive  burghers.  Hovering  in  the  distance  around  this 
genial  band,  like  ghosts  come  to  trouble  joy,  frowned  the 
unwholesome  countenances  of  numerous  special  police 
men,  which  but  faintly  reflected  the  jovial  features  of  the 
students.  They  had  made  two  or  three  efforts  to  seize  some 
thoughtless  loiterer,  but  the  cry  of  "Yale!  Yale!" 
"Harvard  to  the  rescue!"  had  brought  such  a  nest  of 
hornets  about  their  ears  that  they  had  retreated.  At  length, 
Mr.  Poplet,  a  pious  young  fellow,  who  had  been  urging 
Rakeman  to  disband  his  troops,  sprained  his  ankle  :  Ayres 


246  Fair  Harvard. 

remained  behind  to  assist  him,  when,  in  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye,  ten  policemen  pounced  upon  them,  and  before  they 
could  call  for  help  they  were  mercilessly  immured  in  the 
Eastile  of  the  town  :  there  they  passed  the  night  revolving 
many  things  in  their  minds. 

"  Suppose  we  build  a  bonfire!"  suddenly  cried  Sweat- 
rame  to  his  friends. 

"  Bravo!"  returned  every  one,  delighted,  and  ran  to 
secure  fuel. 

"Why  not  burn  it  before  the  Mayor's  house?  He'll 
make  us  a  speech  !"  said  Go  wan,  and  the  students  at  once 
marched  thither  :  Gowan  staggered  under  an  empty  barrel  ; 
Sweatrame  carried  a  milliner's  sign,  Dummer  a  tobacco 
nist's  show  figure,  and  every  one  had  secured  his  offering. 
There  was  standing  at  the  corner  of  the  two  main  streets  of 
the  town,  a  mammoth  wooden  boot  which  might  have 
graced  the  foot  of  the  prince  of  the  Brobdignagians — the 
labor  of  many  days  and  the  delight  of  its  possessor.  This,  at 
Rakeman's  command,  six  heroic  men  with  violent  strains 
wrenched  from  its  base,  and  placed  before  the  Mayor's  gate. 
Its  owner  slumbers  far  away  in  the  soft  embraces  of  his 
faithful  spouse;  him,  cheerily  whistling  with  light  heart  re 
turning  on  the  morrow  to  his  shop,  the  empty  pedestal 
will  surprise,  and  the  ravished  boot  :  ravening,  he  will  scour 
the  town  to  discover  the  charred  remains  of  his  idol,  and 
never  more  to  smile  ;  but  to  return  to  our  muttons. 

These  had  now  built  a  fire  worthy  of  Prometheus  before 
the  house  of  the  Mayor,  and  formed  in  a  ring  were  singing 
"Auld  Lang  Syne."  The  cheerful  blaze  gilded  the  streets 


Fair  Harvard.  247 

and  houses,  and  warmed  the  damp  features  of  distant 
policemen,  and  citizens  unused  to  such  diversions. 

"Give  us  a  speech,  Gowan  !"  shouted  a  friend  to  the 
young  orator,  who  had  clambered  upon  a  fence. 

Gowan,  nothing  loath,  steadied  himself  and  began — 

"Gentlemen,  and  ladies!"  he  added,  waving  his  hand 
to  two  or  three  biddies  who  were  hanging  upon  the 
skirts  of  the  students.  "The  flower  of  the  Intellectual 
and  Sporting  worlds" — 

" What  does  all  this  mean  !  Stop  this  noise  !  Police! 
Seize  him  !  Hang  him  !"  and  the  indignant  night-gown 
and  slippers  of  the  worthy  Mayor  burst  through  the  door, 
and  a  fist  brandished  itself  in  great  heat. 

"The  Mayor  !  The  Mayor  !"  shouted  the  students.  "A 
speech  from  the  Mayor  !" 

"Silence!"  ordered  Rakeman,  and  he  climbed  upon  the 
fence. 

"  Mr.  Mayor!"  he  then  began,  making  him  a  courteous 
salute  with  his  cue.  "The  scholars  of  America  have 
gathered  together  on  this  classic  occasion  to  beg  the  favor 
of  a  speech  from  your  eloquent  lips. " 

"Speech!  You  drunken  rascals!  I'll  have  you  all 
arrested  !" 

"Bravo!  Encore!"  shouted  the  students.  "Three 
cheers  for  the  Mayor !" 

Again  Rakeman  enjoined  silence.  "  If,  Mr.  Mayor,"  he 
said,  making  him  a  second  salute  with  his  cue,  "you 
are,  as  you  allege,  too  much  under  the  influence  of  liquor 
at  present  to  speak,  we  will  defer  our  pleasure. " 


248  Fair  Harvard. 

"  Police  !  Jail  !  Militia !  Fire  !  Charge  !  My  coun 
try  !"  Three  domestics  removed  their  master  from  the 
night  air  in  the  midst  of  such  utterances. 

After  an  hour  of  further  debate  the  students  marched  to 
ward  their  hotels.  As  they  were  passing  down  a  sloping 
street,  they  saw  before  them  a  lawless  band  of  special 
policemen  who  had  gathered  from  the  whole  town  to  dis 
pute  their  passage.  Our  young  friends  halted  behind  a 
heavy  dirt-cart  and  held  a  council  of  war.  "Let  us  bowl 
down  the  specials!"  cried  Rakeman,  struck  with  an  idea 
worthy  of  Hannibal.  At  once  the  cart  was  turned  and 
aimed  at  the  wondering  enemy ;  down  thundered  the 
merciless  engine,  scattering  terror  and  policemen  in  its 
course.  One  leaped  through  a  window-pane;  a  second 
climbed  a  tree,  where  he  perched  like  the  author  of  evil  ; 
the  captain  of  the  band  dived  down  a  sewer  which  opened 
to  receive  him  ;  the  rest  took  to  their  heels  and  left  the 
students  to  continue  their  peaceful  way  to  their  hotels,  where 
they  arrived  in  safety. 

Sweatrame  at  once  demanded  a  room  of  the  hotel-clerk, 
who  in  vain  informed  him  that  there  was  no  room. 

' '  Come  with  me,  Sweatrame ;  I  have  a  room  you 
shall  share,"  said  Rakeman,  leading  him  up  stairs. 
"I  found  the  name  of  a  man  from  Providence,"  he  then 
explained  to  him,  "on  the  hotel  book,  who  had  a  large 
room  which  I  thought  ought  to  be  put  to  a  better  use  ;  so  I 
at  once  went  to  the  telegraph  office  and  dispatched  a  mes 
sage  to  him  to  return  home  at  once  on  important  business ; 


Fair  Harvard.  249 

the  obliging  fellow  had  just  time  to  catch  the  train  and  this 
is  his  room." 

Sweatrame  took  the  latitude  and  longitude  of  the  room 
with  great  care,  and  left  Rakeman  to  go  to  bed.  Rake- 
man  had  but  half  undressed  himself,  and  was  just  pulling 
off  his  other  boot,  when  he  heard  a  noise  in  the  entry,  and 
looking  out  saw  Sweatrame  rapping  violently  at  the  door 
opposite. 

Within  that  room  seven  American  citizens  were  en 
joying  a  momentary  snooze  in  their  trim  little  bed ;  as 
they  awoke,  a  Nile  of  oaths  was  poured  against  the  in 
quirer.  "You  have  taken  my  room,  you  villains  1"  cried 
Sweatrame  nothing  daunted  ;  then,  without  further  persua 
sion,  he  climbed  through  the  ventilator  over  the  door  into 
the  room,  unlocked  the  door,  pulled  out  the  key,  and  jumped 
from  the  room  :  as  our  seven  citizens  clasped  the  door-han 
dle,  the  click  of  the  key  informed  them  that  they  were  safely 
locked  within.  Rakeman  waited  a  few  minutes,  then  stole 
off  a  short  distance,  and  cried  "Fire  !  Fire  !"  at  the  top 
of  his  voice.  This  magic  word  filled  the  room  opposite  with 
a  legion  of  devils.  Picture  to  yourself,  gentle  reader,  seven 
Bengal  tigers,  each  fighting  to  lead  the  way  through  the 
eye  of  a  needle  ;  you  can  thus  form  some  dim  conception 
of  the  struggle  of  our  peaceful  citizens  to  make  their  escape 
through  the  narrow  passage  over  the  door.  ' '  Next  year, " 
said  Rakeman,  telling  the  story  to  Van  in  the  morning, 
"when  the  room  is  again  occupied,  some  lucky  waiter 
will  find  seven  skeletons  lying  about  it,  which  he  will  dis 
pose  of,  with  profit  to  the  Harvard  Medical  School/' 


250  Fair  Harvard. 

Scarcely  had  this  selfish  contest  subsided,  when  Rake- 
man  heard  his  name  called  from  the  upper  entry.  Run 
ning  up  the  stairs  he  found  there  by  a  window,  a  huge 
pile  of  boots  and  shoes,  which  Sweatrame,  Dummer,  and 
Gowan  had  been  at  pains  to  collect  from  the  whole  hotel  ; 
these  they  were  throwing  on  wagers  at  cats,  gas-lamps,  01, 
choicest  of  marks,  the  blue  coat  of  a  policeman.  Hence 
in  the  morning  the  tears  of  many  men  mourning  over  their 
boots,  and  their  curses  on  the  cause  of  letters,  but  from  the 
boot-makers  of  the  town  (save  one)  blessings  without  num 
ber.  "Thus  God  keeps  the  moral  as  the  physical  world 
in  equilibria, "  said  Van,  ' '  and  what  is  taken  away  by  one 
person  is  added  by  another." 

With  these  careless  humors,  until  morning  dawned,  our 
young  friends  ruffianed  it,  and  made  night's  rafters  ring 
with  songs  and  wild  uproar,  that  old  men  fumed  over  their 
broken  sleep  and  the  degenerate  days  ;  mothers  clasped 
their  infants  to  their  breasts,  and  prayed  that  they  might 
never  go  to  college  :  serving  maids  hid  their  heads  beneath 
the  clothes  and  called  on  Holy  Mary  ;  only  the  young  rosy 
bosomed  daughters  of  Eve,  trembling  as  they  awoke  from  in 
nocent  dreams,  felt  a  strange  interest  in  the  young  revellers, 
and  a  longing  desire  to  reform  them  by  the  charm  of 
female  influence. 

The  next  day  was  a  glorious  day  for  the  race.  Lake 
Quinsigamond  lay  smooth  as  a  mirror :  the  boats'  course 
was  surrounded  by  gaily  trimmed  pleasure  boats  :  on  shore 
the  blue  and  red  ribbons  of  the  pretty  partisans  upon  the 
platform  waved  like  a  garden  of  flowers :  their  sweet  jar- 


Fair  Harvard.  251 

goning  blended  with  the  manly  tones  of  the  students  and 
the  salt  jests  of  the  boatmen.  The  Yale  and  Harvard 
rested  lightly  before  the  judge's  boat  :  Wentworth  was 
pulling  two,  Van  three,  Bowyer  was  stroke,  and  Bilger  bow  : 
their  broad  backs  were  almost  parallel  with  the  water. 

"Are  you  ready?''  cried  one  of  the  judges.  "Back 
a  little,  Harvard." 

"Are  you  ready?" 

"Aye  !  Aye  I" 

"Ready.     Go!" 

At  the  word  the  two  boats  leaped  over  the  water.  ' '  Har 
vard  !  Harvard !  Yale !  Go  in  Yale  !  Bravo,  Harvard  ! 
Hurrah  for  Yale  !  Fifty  dollars  on  Yale  I  Taken  !"  shouted 
the  men  on  shore  as  the  boats  glided  bow  and  bow  past 
the  seats. 

The  handles  of  the  Harvard  oars  spanned  the  space 
from  beyond  the  toes  of  the  pullers  to  their  chests,  which 
bent  back  beyond  the  perpendicular :  the  Yale  pulled 
a  shorter  stroke  and  feathered  nearer  the  water. 

The  two  boats  passed  into  the  silence  of  the  lake  ;  the 
Yale  now  drew  half  a  length  ahead,  now  the  Harvard  ; 
Wentworth  heard  nothing  but  the  six  oars  as  one  striking 
the  tholepins  ;  he  saw  nothing  but  the  broad  back  of  the 
stroke  and  its  huge  muscles  rising  and  falling  :  his  body 
seemed  turning  into  bundles  of  whip-cords  :  the  blood 
ran  tingling  from  his  temples  to  his  toes  :  a  mad  thirst 
for  victory  possessed  him  :  he  pulled  fiercely  but  steadily 
on.  Suddenly  he  heard  a  grating  sound  on  his  left. 

"Hold  port:    Hard   starboard!"    cried  Bilger  angrily, 


252  Fair  Harvard. 

and  drove  the  rudder  to  the  larboard.  Wentworth  turned 
his  head  :  his  boat  had  been  accidentally  driven  in  to  the 
shore  :  the  starboard  oars  were  scattering  the  shingle  on 
the  beach  :  the  Yale  was  a  length  ahead.  A  shudder  of 
despair  ran  through  his  breast,  but  a  moment  later  they 
were  steered  into  deeper  water. 

"  Are  you  ready,  boys?"  muttered  Bilger.  Bowyer  gave 
a  savage  grunt. 

"Spurt  her!''  hissed  Bilger;  and  Bowyer  quickened 
without  shortening  his  stroke.  White  drops  of  foam  flew 
around  the  boat :  she  rocked  from  side  to  side. 

"Steady,  confound  you  !"  cried  the  angry  bow  ;  and  the 
boat  again  ran  upon  an  upright  keel.  The  oars  cut  the 
water  like  knife-blades ;  they  were  pulling  forty-eight 
strokes  a  minute.  And  now  a  wild  joy  filled  Wentworth's 
heart,  as  his  boat  under  its  matchless  stroke  crept  even  with 
its  rival  :  strained  ahead,  now  a  yard,  now  half  a  length, 
now  a  length — and  now  Bilger  had  steered  them  across 
the  bows  of  the  Yale  and  Bowyer  returned  to  his  common 
stroke.  They  reached  the  upper  stake,  the  Yale  more 
than  a  length  behind  them. 

"  Hold  port !  hard  starboard  !"  cried  Bilger  ;  and  Went 
worth  drove  his  oar  into  the  water  and  leaned  to  the  lar 
board,  as  the  boat  slowly  turned.  What  was  his  rage  to  see 
the  Yale  cut  in  nearer  the  stake  and  start  on  the  home 
stretch  half  a  length  ahead.  The  boats  now  nerved  them 
selves  for  the  final  struggle.  The  Yale  made  for  the  middle 
of  the  lake ;  the  Harvard  hugged  the  shore.  The  land 
here  runs  out  into  the  lake  and  cuts  it  off  from  the  view  of 


Fair  Harvard.  253 

the  spectators  on  the  platform  ;  for  a  few  minutes  neither 
boat  could  be  seen ;  then  darted  into  sight  the  blue  caps 
of  the  Yale  ;  a  yell  of  triumph  burst  from  their  friends. 

' '  Where  are  you,  Harvard  ?"  ' '  Two  to  one  on  the  Yale  !'' 
"Three  to  one  on  the  Yale  !"  and  no  takers.  Suddenly  the 
light  flashed  from  the  shining  oars  of  the  Harvard  crew  as 
they  glided  around  the  point,  closely  pressing  their  rivals. 

"Harvard!  Harvard!"  yell  a  fierce  chorus,  whoss 
words  faintly  reach  the  boat. 

The  spectators  then  grow  silent;  no  more  odds  are 
offered  ;  swiftly  the  boats  draw  near  their  goal.  They  are 
but  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant,  and  the  Harvard  is  still 
half  a  length  behind. 

"Are  you  ready?"  whispers  the  bow. 

Bowyer  gives  an  inspiring  grunt. 

"Spurt  her  !"  growls  Bilger. 

Again  the  boat  quivers  under  Bowyer's  fiery  stroke. 
Wentworth  feels  that  they  are  gaining  upon  their  rival ;  the 
oars  shoot  across  the  water  like  flashes  of  light ;  they  are 
even  with  her ;  he  would  give  ten  years  of  his  life  to  win  ; 
they  have  crept  ahead  of  her  a  yard,  half  a  length,  a  length  ; 
a  fierce  delight  sends  strength  into  every  stroke  ;  now  they 
are  gliding  past  the  platform  full  three  lengths  in  advance. 
The  Harvard  men  are  yelling  wildly,  and  hugging  each  other 
in  triumph  ;  the  ladies  are  uttering  their  dainty  hurrahs, 
and  crying,  "Harvard  !  Harvard  !'' 

Wentworth  turns  his  head  a  moment  to  the  left :  Miss 
Campbell  and  her  friends  are  standing  on  a  barge,  waving 
their  handkerchiefs,  and  calling,  "Bravo!"  Wentworth 


254  Fair  Harvard. 

turns  back  his  head,  throws  all  his  strength  into  his  stroke — 
once — twice — suddenly  he  hears  a  loud  snap  and  sees  his 
broken  blade  floating  in  the  distance  ;  a  fierce  oath  breaks 
from  Van,  whose  jaw  has  been  nearly  dislocated  by  Went- 
worth's  head  ;  the  boat  half  capsizes. 

"Steady!"  yells  Bilger,  beside  himself  with  rage,  and 
drives  the  rudder  to  the  starboard.  The  remaining  four 
men  redouble  their  strokes  as  well  as  the  rocking  boat 
permits  ;  the  Yale  quickly  gains  upon  them,  but  it  is  too 
late  ;  as  the  pistol  cracks  the  Harvard  is  still  a  length  ahead. 

' '  Three  cheers  for  Harvard!"  cried  the  stroke  of  the  Yale, 
and  three  cheers  for  Yale  were  returned.  The  Harvard  then 
pulled  past  the  platform,  which  was  ringing  with  huzzas  ; 
from  the  platform,  Bilger  steered  them  to  the  opposite  shore, 
where  the  crew  disembarked,  and  were  loaded  with  the 
congratulations  of  their  friends. 

"  Come,  fellows,"  said  Van  to  the  rest  of  the  crew,  "let 
me  invite  you  to  dine  with  me;  it  is  nine  weeks  since  I 
have  tasted  food." 

Of  all  the  pleasures  of  life,  a  glorious  dinner  after  long 
training  is  the  most  sacred.  Far  into  the  night  the  hungry 
crew  feasted  on  the  ambrosial  food  and  drank  the  divine 
wine. 

The  triumph,  the  dinner,  and  to-morrow's  separation 
made  Van  talk  more  earnestly  and  truly  with  his  friend  than 
when  he  wore  the  cool  habit  of  common  courtesy. 

"It  always  cuts  me  more,  Wentworth,"  he  said  after 
they  had  gone  to  their  room,  "to  leave  you,  than  anything 
else.  You  are  my  friend,  and  a  man  who  would  love  me 


Fair  Harvard.  255 

the  same,  rich  or  poor,  in  honor  or  disgrace.  The  good 
opinion  of  the  mass  of  men  I  count  for  what  it  is  worth  ; 
it  can  be  bought  for  a  cigar ;  it  is  lost  by  a  shabby  coat  : 
but  a  real  friend — for  these  men  are  but  spectral — his  friend 
ship  I  value  as  the  choicest  treasure  of  my  life.  Promise 
me  one  thing,  old  boy,  that  you  svon't  throw  yourself  away 
from  a  passion  for  a  woman  :  they  arn't  worth  it :  you 
moral  men  always  overrate  them ;  I  remember  when  I 
thought  as  you  do,"  a  look  of  hatred  passed  over  Van's 
face,  "I  have  half  a  mind  to  tell  you." 

"Stop!  stop,  Van!"  said  Wentworth  ;  "I  don't  wish 
to  hear  any  secrets,  which  in  the  morning  you  may  regret 
to  have  told." 

"You  are  right,  Wentworth,"  replied  Van.  "It  is  more 
honorable.  Good-night,  old  boy. 

« You  must  wake  and  call  me  early,  call  me  early,  mother  dear.' " 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

"  Qui  sapit,  innumeris  moribus  aptus  erit, 
Utque  leves  Proteus  modo  se  tenuabit  in  undas." 

j>OU  must  go  with  us  to-night  to  Mrs.  Morris's 
mask-ball/'  said  Wentworth's  cousin,  Miss 
Saulsbury,  at  whose  house  in  Newport  he  had 
just  arrived  to  spend  a  part  of  his  Summer  vacation.  ' '  You 
will  meet  the  beautiful  Miss  Campbell  and  Miss  Leigh  ; 
the  party  is  given  for  them  :  they  are  from  Boston  :  of 
course  you  know  them." 

"Fate  is  against  me,"  thought  Wentworth,  as  he  heard 
Miss  Campbell's  name.  "Why  should  I  resist  it?" 

Fate  is  a  variety  of  things  :  she  is  a  scape-goat ;  she  is  a 
ready  ally  to  every  wish  of  doubtful  propriety ;  why  is  it 
that  we  are  never  fated  to  do  what  is  right  ?  But  I  am  not 
equal  to  an  analysis  of  Fate  in  this  short  chapter. 

Wentworth  had  heard  that  Miss  Campbell  was  at  New 
port,  but  he  probably  had  not  expected  to  meet  her. 

That  evening,  as  Wentworth  was  offering  himself  as  a 
mark  for  the  pretty  assassins  around  him,  he  caught  sight 
of  a  lady  whose  step  he  could  not  mistake.  She  seemed  a 
lovely  vision  of  Undine  :  her  dress,  of  transparent,  shim- 


Fair  Harvard.  257 

mering  sea  green,  hung  around  her  graceful  form  in  loose, 
undulating  folds,  caught  up  with  water  lilies,  and  sprays 
of  coral :  her  beautiful  hair  fell  in  long  ripples  over  her 
shoulders,  and  was  crowned  by  a  wreath  of  the  same  buds  ; 
the  drapery  of  her  dress  was  fastened  at  the  waist  by  a  deep 
belt  of  tiny  shells  :  her  sleeves  were  looped  with  the  same 
ornaments,  while  a  single  row  of  pearls  encircled  her  fair 
throat.  As  she  approached  Wentworth,  she  threw  him  a 
little  bunch  of  blue  violets.  The  boy  at  once  followed  the 
lovely  mermaid  and  asked  Mr.  Morris,  with  whom  she 
was  walking,  to  allow  him  to  take  his  lady. 

' '  I  know  who  you  are,  very  well, "  said  our  hero.  ' '  Who 
has  such  grace  ?  who  such  a  swan-like  throat  ?  who  such 
houri  eyes  ?  Though  all  the  rest  of  you  were  concealed, 
one  glance  from  them  would  betray  you  ;  I  read  you  for 
Miss  Jones." 

"The  world  knows  who  you  are,"  replied  the  mask. 
* t  The  flower  of  courtesy,  the  truest  of  friends,  the — but  do 
lead  me  into  a  cooler  place,"  she  added,  dropping  her 
voice  from  the  ear-piercing  key  of  the  masks  around  her. 

"Will  you  not  take  off  your  mask,  Miss  Campbell?" 
urged  Wentworth,  when  they  had  reached  one  of  the  distant 
paths  which  surrounded  the  house  in  which  the  masks 
were  hurrying  to  and  fro. 

"Hush!"  said  Miss  Campbell.  "There  is  Mr.  Otis 
looking  for  me  ;  there  is  Miss  Campbell,"  she  then  said, 
speaking  to  the  latter  gentleman,  and  pointing  to  a  girl  of 
about  her  own  size,  who  was  evidently  being  fought  for  by 
two  gentlemen,  some  little  distance  off.  Mr.  Otis  walked 


258  Fair  Harvard. 

away,  and  Miss  Campbell  returned  to  Wentworth,  elated 
by  her  success. 

"Take  this  !"  she  said,  giving  him  an  ivy  leaf.  "It  is 
the  symbol  of  your  constancy  ;  don't  you  remember  that 
six  months  ago  you  promised  to  be  my  friend  ?  You  have 
never  been  to  see  me  since." 

"My  mother/'  replied  Wentworth,  "taught  me,  when 
still  young,  not  to  walk  into  the  fire." 

"Oh,  fortunate  mother  to  have  so  docile  a  son  !'"  said 
Miss  Campbell,  and  took  off  her  mask.  When  Miss  Camp 
bell  was  excited  her  eyelids  quivered,  and  as  they  closed, 
her  eyes  flashed  forth  like  melting  diamonds.  For  six 
months  our  hero  had  been  building  a  citadel  of  books, 
theories,  and  principles  for  his  soul ;  one  glance  from  Miss 
Campbell  and  down  it  all  tumbled. 

"Love,"  he  said  to  himself,  "has  its  rights  as  well  as 
convention ;  I  will  try  and  win  her. " 

"I  supposed,"  he  said  to  Miss  Campbell,  "that  when  a 
lady  was  engaged,  all  her  thoughts  and  feelings  belonged 
to  the  beloved  object,  and  that  to  steal  a  glance  or  word, 
would  be  a  moral  theft." 

"Miss  Campbell's  eyes  again  flashed. 

"Belonged!  did  you  say?    You  are  too  gallant." 

"You  would  not  drive  your  fiance,  jealous  ?"  said  Went 
worth. 

"A  little  jealousy  does  no  one  any  harm,"  replied  the 
girl ;  "  it  is  a  spur  to  keep  love  on  the  wing  ;  without  it 
love  becomes  too  tame  ;  but  don't  think  that  I  wanted  to 
ask  you  to  see  me ;  I  merely  wished  to  tell  you  that  my 


Fair  Harvard.  259 

friends  have  bought  you  a  pillar,  on  the  top  of  which  you 
can  live  retired,  like  St.  Simeon  Stylites  ;  your  mother  will 
bring  you  food  in  a  basket." 

Wentworth,  though  young,  knew  the  way  to  conquer  a 
woman  in  argument. 

"What  is  it,  in  heaven's  name?"  I  hear  a  hundred  hus 
bands  ask,  offering  me  full  purses.  It  is  to  say  nothing. 

"  Miss  Campbell,"  Wentworth  therefore  remarked,  "how 
charmingly  you  are  dressed  to-night ;  all  the  ladies  to  whom 
I  have  spoken  have  flattered  you  with  their  envy."  He 
then  asked  his  fair  partner  to  promenade  with  him, 
and  for  the  rest  of  the  evening  devoted  himself  to  her  ex 
clusively. 

"Will  you  not  be  at  home  in  the  morning?"  he  asked, 
as  he  took  his  leave. 

"I  do  not  know,"  replied  the  girl,  with  a  coquettish 
smile. 

The  next  morning,  however,  Miss  Campbell's  fatigue 
compelled  her  to  permit  Miss  Leigh  to  make  her  calls 
alone.  Wentworth  never  enjoyed  a  morning  in  his  life  so 
much,  except  the  next,  and  the  next,  and  the  next. 

But  Miss  Campbell's  engagement  with  Mr.  Otis !  Of 
course  she  kept  that  constantly  before  her  mind,  but  you 
know,  my  pretty  readers,  or  will  soon  know,  I  trust,  that 
nothing  so  fans  the  passion  of  a  lover  as  to  have  rivals  in 
the  field.  Your  lover,  then,  not  only  sees  the  divine  prize 
of  your  own  charms  before  him,  but  feels  the  spur  of  emu 
lation.  Besides,  wit  is  always  something  of  a  radical. 
Wealth,  a  high  position,  and  all  the  social  virtues,  though 


260  Fair  Harvard. 

they  make  a  man  a  worthy  object  to  gain,  make  him  rather 
tedious  to  keep ;  there  is  so  little  in  absolute  respectability 
to  touch  the  heart  of  an  imaginative  girl.  Miss  Campbell 
thought  of  none  of  these  things ;  she  was  far  too  honorable. 
It  is,  however,  the  unconscious  feelings  of  women  that  con 
trol  their  actions.  What  Miss  Campbell  did  think,  was  this, 
that  it  would  not  be  courteous  to  refuse  to  see  a  gentleman 
when  he  called  upon  her,  especially  if  he  were  handsome 
and  appreciative. 

Wentworth,  himself,  had  a  nature  which  was  capable  of 
a  grand  passion ;  having  once  lost  the  rein,  love  was  his 
master  and  must  run  its  course. 

Our  hero,  therefore,  pursued  his  game  with  the  spirit 
and  freshness  of  youth  ;  he  walked  at  Miss  Campbell,  he 
rode  at  her,  he  danced  at  her,  he  swam  at  her,  he  bowled 
at  her,  he  rowed  at  her,  he  drove  at  her,  and  in  fact  attack 
ed  her  with  all  the  weapons  which  youth  and  leisure  offered 
to  his  hand.  After  he  had  been  some  weeks  in  New 
port,  he  received  a  letter  from  his  mother,  telling  him 
that  he  must  not  allow  a  woman,  whose  affections  were 
already  engaged,  to  have  any  attractions  for  him.  This, 
my  fair  readers,  of  course  at  once  put  an  end  to  Went- 
worth's  attentions ;  he  remained  in  Newport,  however,  two 
weeks  after  his  vacation  was  over,  and  lost  his  rank  in  his 
class  by  consequence. 

Mr.  Otis's  business  allowed  him  to  come  to  Newport 
but  twice  a  week ;  but  his  sister,  who  was  very  plain, 
and  no  great  friend  of  Miss  Campbell,  kept  him  informed 
daily  of  matters  of  public  interest.  You  may  be  sure  that 


Fair  Harvard.  261 

she  did  not  omit  those  delicate  personal  touches,  innuen 
does,  and  on  dits,  which  have  always  won  for  women  the 
palm  of  epistolary  excellence ;  and  Mr.  Otis  was  at  length 
persuaded  by  his  sister's  letters  to  remonstrate  with  Miss 
Campbell. 

Now,  to  remonstrate  successfully  with  a  woman,  you  must 
use  words  in  which  she  can  never  guess  that  any  remon 
strance  is  intended.  As  remonstrance  of  this  kind  produces 
no  effect  whatsoever,  why,  the  over-curious  may  inquire, 
do  you  call  it  successful  ?  Because,  my  dear  sirs,  this  mode, 
and  this  alone,  does  no  harm.  Mr.  Otis  was  too  honest, 
and  had  too  little  command  of  language  for  this  Macchia- 
vellian  method,  and  simply  told  Miss  Camp-bell,  that 
he  hoped  she  would  see  less  of  Mr.  Saulsbury.  At  this 
Miss  Campbell  became  highly  indignant  ;  though  her 
pride  prevented  her  making  any  reply,  there  sprang  up  a 
tacit  misunderstanding  between  her  lover  and  herself,  which 
was  heightened  by  an  incident  which  happened  the  day 
before  Miss  Campbell  returned  to  Boston,  and  Wentworth 
to  Cambridge. 

Miss  Campbell,  her  cousin,  Wentworth,  and  Miss  Otis, 
were  standing  on  the  rocks  behind  Mrs.  Morris's  house  ; 
the  sun  was  setting ;  the  breakers  were  dashing  their  spray 
as  near  the  ladies'  dresses  as  they  dared. 

"  How  still  it  always  is  at  sunset !"  said  Miss  Campbell. 
"There's  not  a  breath  of  wind  stirring,"  and  she  held  up 
her  handkerchief  to  see  if  it  moved.  In  a  moment  a  cats- 
paw  had  snatched  it  away  and  it  lay  floating  on  the  top  of 
a  wave,  a  rod  from  the  shore.  Wentworth,  as  soon  as  he 


262  Fair  Harvard. 

saw  the  white  spot  on  the  \\_ter,  touched  his  hat  to  Miss 
Campbell,  and  the  next  moment  she  saw  him  arching  the 
waves  and  disappearing  beneath  them ;  soon  he  reap 
peared  beyond  the  handkerchief  which  he  seized  and 
brought  back  to  the  rock. 

"It  was  a  pity  to  ruin  your  clothes/'  said  Miss  Camp 
bell,  half  smiling,  and  with  a  heightened  color,  as  she 
looked  with  a  little  feeling  of  pride  and  gratified  vanity  at 
Wentworth's  dripping  coat  "  Ah  !  Miss  Otis,  you  do  not 
know  how  dangerous  to  a  woman's  heart  is  a  little  graceful 
and  rash  gallantry." 

"Perhaps,"  said  Wentworth,  "you  would  resent  it, 
were  I  almost  tempted  to  desire  that  you,  and,  not  your 
handkerchief,  had  been  in  danger."  He  gave  her  a  quick 
look  as  he  said  these  words,  that  made  Miss  Campbell's 
soft  lashes  shut  out  all  the  light  of  her  eyes  for  a  moment. 

"Keep  it,  at  least,  till  it  is  dry,"  she  said,  looking  up 
and  laughing  a  little  embarrassed  laugh,  "I  should  like  to 
decorate  you  with  it,  and  make  you  my  chevalier." 

Wentworth  ran  the  delicate  piece  of  muslin  through  his 
button  hole,  and  said  smiling,  "It  is  really  tout  ce  qtiil  y 
a  de  plus  mouchoir.  I  do  not  think,  if  that  is  the  condition 
on  which  I  receive  it,  that  it  will  ever  be  dry." 

This  innocent  incident-,  even  when  colored  by  the  genius 
of  Miss  Otis,  afforded  her  brother,  very  little  pleasure. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

"  Quid  enim  falsi  Lauronia?" 

ISS  CAMBPELL  was  one  morning,  early  the 
next  winter,  engaged  in  embroidering,  and  in 
meditating  on  what  Mr.  Otis  had  just  said. 
"If  James  wishes  it,"  she  thought,  "I  of  course  ought 
to  do  what  he  says  ;  but  I  cannot  be  unkind  to  my  friends  ; 
that  is  a  duty  I  owe  to  myself.  The  world,  he  says,  calls 
me  a  flirt ;  but  the  world  is  always  wrong.  If  I  thought 
Mr.  Saulsbury  was  in  love  with  me — but  I  know  he  is  not ; 
a  woman  can  always  tell ;  he  is  so  cold ;  he  only  speaks 
of  love  in  the  abstract ;  and  of  poetiy,  and  books.  Moth 
er  says  that  there  can  be  no  such  thing  as  friendship  be 
tween  men  and  women.  What  an  absurd  idea  !  Look  at 
Madame  Recamier,  and — and — there's  a  stitch  lost." 

While  Miss  Campbell  was  debating  with  herself,  a  ser 
vant  brought  her  a  note  from  a  sick  woman,  who  asked 
her  assistance. 

Charity  is  a  favorite  foible  of  the  fair  aristocrats  of  Boston, 
and  is  carried  to  great  lengths.  I  know  of  no  place  in  the 
world  where  the  unlettered  novelists  and  tattered  raconteurs 
who  tickle  the  ears  of  the  rich,  receive  fairer  incomes. 


264  Fair  Harvard. 

' l  What !  Do  you  speak  of  the  objects  of  benevolence 
with  a  sneer?"  I  hear  a  chorus  of  clergymen  exclaim. 

It  is  not,  my  reverend  sirs,  with  a  sneer,  but  with  a  pro 
found  fellow  feeling,  that  I  speak  of  these  illegitimate  mem 
bers  of  our  guild.  In  what  does  the  beggar,  whose  hun 
gry  eyes  glance  from  your  face  to  his  eloquent  hat,  and  who 
pours  out  his  tale  of  want  and  despair,  differ  from  myself, 
save  in  the  pomp  of  type  and  paper  -and  publisher?  His 
Story  may  be  false — so  far  as  I  know,  it  always  is — but  it  is 
false  in  the  same  sense  in  which  Homer,  and  Dante,  and 
Shakespeare  are  false  :  in  the  highest  sense,  nothing  can 
be  more  true.  Gentle  reader,  if  you  wish  to  hear  fictions 
told  with  art  and  power,  at  once  close  this  book,  run  into 
the  highways  and  hedges,  and  with  a  few  pennies,  kindly 
entreat  the  first  beggar  whom  you  see,  to  tell  his  story. 

Miss  Campbell,  you  may  be  sure,  was  not  behind  her 
fellows  in  benevolence  :  she  spent  an  hour  or  more  a  day 
in  its  exercise,  and  laid  up  treasure'  in  Heaven  for  herself, 
to  the  amount  of  about  a  thousand  dollars  a  year,  and  that 
in  gold  times :  estimated  in  currency,  you  will  perceive  that 
the  sum  would  be  much  larger. 

On  reading  the  note,  she  at  once  hurried  to  the  woman's 
address,  which  was  at  a  little  house  in  Myrtle  Street.  The 
room  into  which  our  heroine  entered,  was  small  and 
squalid  :  a  few  sunbeams  struggling  through  the  shutters, 
revealed  a  bed,  a  small  table,  and  two  old  chairs,  its  only 
furniture  ;  on  the  table,  which  stood  by  the  bedside,  lay  a 
bottle  of  oil,  a  phial  half  full  of  whiskey,  and  a  broken  cup 
which  held  a  few  faded  rose  buds  ;  on  the  bed  lay  a  woman, 


Fair  Harvard.  265 

at  sight  of  whose  face  Miss  Campbell's  heart  melted  with 
pity. 

1 '  Has  the  good  lady  come  ?"  asked  the  poor  sufferer  ; 
and  as  she  spoke,  she  gave  Miss  Campbell  that  look  of 
gratitude,  which  makes  one's  charity  however  great,  seem 
to  dwindle  to  nothing. 

' '  You  are  so  good,  dear  lady, "  continued  the  woman. 
"I  have  heard  of  your  goodness  so  often,  I  dared  to  write 
to  you  ;  I  am  very  sick  ;  and  my  friends — I  have  no  friends 
any  more.  You  will  do  me  a  kindness,  will  you  not  ?" 

"It  is  you  who  confer  a  favor  on  me,  my  poor  girl  ;" 
and  Miss  Campbell's  eyes  filled  with  tears,  as  she  bade  the 
woman  who  had  opened  the  door  to  run  out  and  purchase 
some  luxuries  for  the  invalid. 

Then,  smoothing  back  the  woman's  tangled  hair,  which 
was  a  chestnut  of  somewhat  darker  shade  than  her  own, 
' '  Do  not  speak,  my  dear  girl,"  she  said,  gently  ;  "  it  will  tire 
you  :  I  will  talk  to  you  ;"  and  she  took  one  of  the  girl's 
hands  between  her  own,  and  sitting  beside  her,  promised 
her  care  and  comfort.  The  poor  woman  seemed,  however, 
to  have  something  upon  her  mind.  "  I  must  speak,  dear 
lady,"  she  at  length  said,  pressing  Miss  Campbell's  hand  to 
her  lips,  and  then  closing  her  eyes  to  hide  her  embarrass 
ment,  "I  cannot  be  silent,  my  heart  must  speak.  I  have  a  fa 
vor  to  ask  of  you,  dear  lady  ;  it  is  not  hard,  but  it  will  be  so 
great  a  one  to  me.  I  cannot  live  to  repay  you  ;  but  you 
are  so  good  ;  I  know  you  prize  the  prayer  of  one  who  is 
dying."  Then,  the  tears  stealing  down  her  face,  she  faltered 
out  her  plaintive  story  in  her  broken  English  : 


266  Fair  Harvard. 

She  was  born  in  sunny  Provence.  When  a  girl  of  six 
teen,  she  had  been  taken  to  Paris  by  her  friends,  and  placed 
upon  the  stage.  "I  did  not  look  then,  as  I  now  do," 
she  said  with  a  sad  smile.  "  Men  called  me  beautiful,  and 
used  to  throw  flowers  before  me,  and  whisper  soft  words 
of  love  in  my  ear  :  and  there  was  one ;  ah  !  he  was  so 
handsome-,  and  rich,  and  good  !  He  told  me  that  he  loved 
me,  and  would  always  love  me,  more  than  any  woman  had 
ever  been  loved  before  ;  and  he  took  me  to  live  with  him, 
first  there,  and  afterwards  he  brought  me  here  to  America  : 
and  we  lived  together  one  whole  year.  Ah  !  those  happy, 
happy  days  !  I  know  it  was  wrong,  dear  lady  ;  I  think  it  is 
always  wrong  to  be  happy  ;  but  I  cannot  regret  it ;  it  was 
so  like  the  sunshine.  And  I  don't  know,  it  seems  to  me 
that  to  love  can  never  be  wrong.  But  one  day  he  was 
cold  ;  I  kissed  his  lips  and  he  would  not  kiss  mine  in  re 
turn.  I  asked  him  what  I  had  done,  and  he  said  he  was 
engaged  to  be  married,  and  could  not  see  me  any  more. 
With  that  I  flung  my  arms  around  him  passionately  and 
cried,  'I  am  your  wife,  before  God.'  He  looked  coldly 
at  me,  and  said,  'Do  not  be  foolish,  Celeste.' 

I  did  not  speak  another  word  ;  I  pressed  my  hand  to 
my  heart  and  went  from  the  room,  and  wandered  up  and 
down  the  city,  so  lonely,  ah  !  so  very  lonely.  There  was 
no  sunshine  any  more,  nor  any  smiles,  but  all  was  black 
around  me.  I  would  have  killed  myself,  only  I  was 
afraid  ;  and  at  length  God  was  good  to  me,  and  sent  me 
this  sickness  And  now,  dear  lady,  that  I  am  dying,  I  can 
not  remember  his  coldness  ;  I  can  only  think  of  the  happy, 


Fair  Harvard.  267 

happy  hours  we  spent  together.  Tell  him  from  me,  dear 
lady,  that  I  love  him,  as  before.  Give  him  this  ring  for 
me,  which  he  gave  me  in  happier  days.  Tell  him  that  I 
love  him,  as  then  :  that  my  dying  words  breathe  a  prayer 
for  him,  and  that  when  I  am  dead  " 

"Who?  where  does  he  live?"  exclaimed  Miss  Camp 
bell,  rising  to  her  feet. 

"  He  lives  here,  dear  lady  :  his  initials  are  on  the  ring  ; 
his  name  is  Otis — James  Otis." 

Miss  Campbell  turned  deadly  pale  ;  she  took  the  ring 
from  the  woman,  placed  her  purse  upon  the  table,  and 
tottered  from  the  room.  She  reached  home,  she  knew  not 
how. 

"Why  Nell,  what  is  the   matter?"   asked  her   mother, 

frightened  at  her  colorless  lips  and  the  wild  expression 
about  her  eyes. 

"Nothing,  mother  dear,"  she  answered  softly.  "I  caught 
a  chill  walking ;  I  shall  go  to  the  ball  to-night  and  dance 
it  off;  I've  changed  my  mind." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

"  Anna  dedi  Dauais  in  Amazonas.   Arma  superaunt, 
Quae  tibi  clem  et  turmse,  Penthesilea,   tuae." 

^APANTI'S !  At  that  word  how  quickly,  as 
with  a  pair  of  compasses,  the  mind  draws  the 
magic  circle  of  Boston  society.  There  fashion 
has  built  her  University.  Around  the  two  poles  of  Har 
vard  and  Papanti's  Boston,  with  what  there  may  be  of  the 
world  besides,  revolves  with  regularity  and  law. 

Mrs.  Morris's  was  the  first  large  ball  of  the  season,  and 
every  one  was  there.  The  chandeliers  were  hung  with 
vines  and  roses ;  the  walls  were  gorgeous  with  duennas, 
whose  charms,  as  time  had  mowed  them  away,  art  had  re 
placed  with  perennial  beauty ;  rosy  cheeked  warriors  were 
skirmishing  throughout  the  body  of  the  hall  with  their  fatal 
weapons. 

"How  divinely  they  play!"  said  Miss  Campbell  in  a 
pause  of  a  waltz  with  Wentworth.  ' '  One's  heart  beats  time 
to  the  music.  You  must  not  tell  any  one  when  you  en 
gaged  me  for  the  German ;  two  or  three  gentlemen  asked 
me  before  you,  and  I  told  them  I  was  already  engaged. 
There  is  Miss  Otis  looking  at  me  ;  she  thinks  I  am  a  flirt," 


Fair  Harvard.  269 

and  the  girl  cast  down  her  eyes  with  a  saintly  look  of  for 
giveness.  "  Will  you  not  wear  one  of  these  roses  for  me  ?" 
"A  thousand  thanks !"  replied  Wentworth,  placing  the 
rose  in  his  buttonhole.  ' '  How  can  your  friend  so  wrong 
you?  If  she  were  right,  how  I  should  tremble  for  my  sex; 
Pandora's  box  of  troubles  would  be  nothing  to  you  ;  Argus, 

with  his  hundred  eyes will  you  not  give  me  another 

turn  ?"  and  off  they  whirled. 

If  I  only  dared  humbly  to  sketch  the  divinities  of  Bos 
ton  society 

"Rash  youth,  forbear!"  cries  Prudence.  "Will  you, 
to  fly  your  kite,  draw  down  upon  yourself  the  lightning  of 
the  gods  ?  Well,  if  you  will,  I've  nothing  to  say  ;  only  re 
member  that  I  told  you  so  !" 

Take  your  place,  then,  gentle  reader,  by  the  door  ;  for  I 
am  resolved  to  whistle  Prudence  down  the  wind  ;  and  look 
out  with  me  upon  the  beauty  and  chivalry  of  breezy  Boston, 
which  are  promenading  before  you. 

First  comes  no  other  than  our  friend  Mr.  Jonathan 
Alcibiades  Pippins,  shining  a  head  above  his  fellow  wits. 
After  five  years'  gestation,  he  has  just  been  delivered  of  his 
fourth  mot,  the  Benjamin  of  his  old  age,  and  mother  and 
child  are  doing  well.  'Twas  his  third  mot — I  remember  it 
distinctly — "Love  is  madness,  but  marriage  is  hellebore," 
which,  joined  to  his  learning  and  versatility,  gained  for  him 
the  title  of  Alcibiades.  Pass  him  by,  timid  muse;  he  wears 
a  wisp  of  hay  upon  his  horn ;  he  is  very  dangerous. 

A  few  paces  behind  Mr.  Pippins  follows  Mr.  B.  S.  Pitt, 
one  of  Boston's  own,  very  Brahmin  of  very  Brahmin.  Mr. 


270  Fair  Harvard. 

Pitt  is  the  admired  leader  of  Boston's  most  exclusive  set ; 
how  shall  I  shadow  forth  his  character  ?  His  ancient  birth 
puts  to  shame  the  oldest  families  of  the  city ;  without  labor 
and  with  few  breaks  he  has  traced  his  line  through  three 
generations  of  men  :  he  unites  with  his  illustriaus  lineage, 
a  princely  income  of  three  thousand  dollars  a  year :  who 
can  wonder,  then,  if  there  is  about  his  manner  a  touch  per 
haps  too  much  of  aristocratic  hauteur  ?  A  noble  lord  once 
complained  to  him  of  being  received  in  Boston  with  the 
caution  which  one  would  use  in  his  social  intercourse  with 
a  pickpocket. 

"We  are  exclusive,  I  confess  it,"  rejoined  Mr.  Pitt. 

The  Brahmin  has  been  to  Harvard  College,  the  Brahmin 
has  travelled,  the  Brahmin  has  read,  but  the  Brahmin 
rarely  speaks  a  word  :  he  is  too  deep,  too  profound,  to 
need  the  flippant  aid  of  speech.  This  silence  gains  for 
him  the  respect  of  men  and  the  idolatry  of  the  fair ;  before 
its  awful  mystery  the  most  gifted  women  grow  priestesses 
to  an  unseen  power ;  should  the  Brahmin  speak,  they  feel 
that  the  talismanic  word,  the  open  sesame  of  universal 
truth,  would  drop  from  his  lips. 

The  coarsest  of  us  are  taught  by  a  divine  instinct  to 
reverence  this  oriental  reserve,  which  no  combination  of 
circumstances  would  ever  be  grand  enough  to  call  into 
action. 

But  my  pen  drops  from  my  hand ;  I  am  not  equal  to 
my  task  ;  I  will  retire ;  I  will  fill  up  the  number  of  the 
shades  ;  my  friends  shall  tell  their  story  as  before. 

There  was  that  rich  vital  power  in  Miss  Campbell,  that 


Fair  Harvard.  271 

her  slightest  touch  awoke  in  Wentworth  a  sense  of  passion 
ate  life.  "How  well  your  roses  become  you  !"  he  whis 
pered,  as  his  eye  flattered  the  girl's  dress,  which  was  a 
white  silk,  hung  over  with  white  tulle,  looped  with  rose 
buds,  that  matched  the  delicate  coloring  that  came  and 
vanished  on  her  beautiful  neck  and  fair  cheeks  as  the 
dance  and  music  animated  her.  ' '  You  dance  like  the  soul 
of  a  music,  or  a  Cremona  fiddle  inspired  with  life." 

' '  You  change  from  an  Achilles  to  a  Thyrsites  by  your 
conclusion,"  replied  Miss  Campbell,  pleasantly.  "Will  you 
not  hold  my  bouquets  for  me  a  moment  ?  You  were  so 
kind  to  send  me  these  flowers  !  nothing  could  be  prettier." 

"I  hope  you  have  saved  some  dances  for  me,"  said  Mr. 
Otis,  who  had  come  late  to  the  ball,  approaching  them. 

''I  regret  that  I  am  engaged  for  them  all,"  replied  his 
fiancee,  with  coldness  ;  "I  was  afraid  you  were  not  coming 
to-night.  How  gracefully  Miss  Leigh  dances!"  she  added, 
turning  to  Mr.  Pippins,  who  had  come  to  pay  his  respects 
to  her.  "I  always  liked  our  greatest  philosopher  for  call 
ing  Fanny  Elssler's  dancing,  poetry,  and  religion. " 

"Natural  and  revealed  religion,  he  might  have  styled 
it,"  answered  Mr.  Pippins,  who  was  not  over  nice  in  the 
choice  of  his  words. 

Miss  Campbell  turned  to  Wentworth  without  hearing  Mr. 
Pippins. 

"I  am  so  glad  you  liked  my  dress  to-night !"  she  said. 
"Do  I  not  seem  in  good  spirits  ?  I  never  felt  so  full  of  life 
at  a  party  before. " 

"You  must  not  fish  for  a  compliment,  Miss  Campbell," 


272  Fair  Harvard. 

answered  Wentworth,  ' '  when  so  many  are  eager  to  come 
to  you  without  a  hook. " 

"Miss  Campbell,"  said  Mr.  Pippins,  "once  told  a  gen 
tleman,  who  said  that  to  her,  that  she  should  not  fish  in 
such  shallow  water." 

"The  water  is  deep  enough  to  drown  certain  young 
domestic  animals,"  answered  Wentworth,  enrage.  "Miss 
Campbell,"  he  added,  "may  I  not  present  my  friend,  Van 
Courtland,  to  you  ?  he  has  asked  me  so  many  times ;  I 
have  warned  him  against  you,  but  if  he  will  expose  him 
self,  it  is  his  own  fault. "  Wentworth,  with  this,  bowed  to 
Miss  Campbell,  and  walked  towards  Van,  who  was  talking 
to  his  hostess. 

It  is  so  pleasant,"  Mrs.  Morris  was  saying  to  Van,  as 
Wentworth  drew  near.  "It  is  so  pleasant  to  talk  with  a 
man  who  has  been  to  England  ;  here  persons  often  say  ben 

for  been "     Van's   hypocritical  face  at  once  assumed 

the  expression  of  Job  at  the  lowest  depth  of  his  misery, 
which  as  quickly  disappeared  as  he  turned  to  follow  Went 
worth  to  Miss  Campbell,  who  was  now  standing  alone  with 
Mr.  Otis. 

"Can  you  tell  me,  Miss  Campbell,"  asked  Wentworth, 
after  introducing  Van  to  her,  "why,  your  friend,  Mr. 
Pippins,  is  called  Alcibiades  ?" 

"Oh,  I  believe  he  keeps  a  dog,"  answered  Miss  Camp 
bell,  carelessly. 

" Pippins, "  said  Van,  "fires  his  mots  at  people  for  invi 
tations  to  dinners  and  parties,  as  negroes  pelt  monkeys 
with  stones,  that  they  may  throw  back  cocoanuts. " 


Fair  Harvard.  273 

"Your  friend,"  said  Miss  Campbell,  turning  to  Van, 
"gives  you  a  strange  character;  he  says  you  have  not  only 
the  virtues  that  dignify,  but  most  of  the  vices  that  adorn 
mankind." 

"He  flatters  me,  Miss  Campbell,  the  villain!  I  have 
been  reading  Jonathan  Edwards  lately,  and  find  that  the 
devil  is  a  most  handsome,  clever,  and  fascinating  dog. " 

"  Is  he ?"  said  Miss  Campbell ;  "then  would  there  were 
more  than  one  ;  I  read  Calvin  a  few  years  ago,  but  it  seem 
ed  to  me  God  and  the  devil  were  so  mixed  up  in  theology, 
that  I  never  could  tell  which  was  which,  so  I  gave  dp  the 
study.  How  do  you  like  Boston,  Mr.  Van  Courtland  ?" 

' '  Extremely, "  answered  Van;  ' '  though  the  manners  of  the 
ladies  here  may  not,  at  first  blush,  seem  so  cordial  as  those 

in  New  York,  yet  there  is  a "  Wentworth  did  not  stop 

to  hear  the  rest  of  Van's  sentence,  but  courteously  walked 
off  to  speak  to  Mrs.  Morris. 

"What  a  delightful  ball  you  are  giving  to-night!"  he 
said  to  his  hostess. 

"You  are  very  good  to  think  so,  Mr.  Saulsbury ;  but  I 
shall  not  allow  you  to  remain  idle  ;  I  wish  to  present  you 
to  my  niece,  Miss  White  ;  she  is  very  pretty  and  clever. " 

"What  a  terrible  day  it  has  been,  Mr.  Saulsbury  !"  said 
Miss  White  ;  ' '  my  ears  were  nearly  frozen  this  morning  ; 
is  it  not  strange  that  when  one  part  of  the  ear  freezes,  the 
whole  grows  cold  ?  I  heard  of  you  at  Newport  last  sum 
mer  ;  how  delightful  it  is  there  !  so  much  life  and  gaiety  ; 
so  much  pleasanter  than  Nahant !  How  lovely  this  air  is  ! 
This  floor  is  splendid  to  dance  on ;  it  spoils  one  for  danc- 


274  Fair  Harvard. 

ing  at  private  houses.  How  do  you  like  Miss  Campbell's 
dress?  Does  she  not  dance  well?  Do  you  know  the 
gentleman  she  is  with  ?  he  is  very  handsome  and  romantic 
looking.  Women  never  think  of  a  man's  appearance,  they 
only  look  at  his  character.  Ah,  Mr.  Saulsbury,  you  are  so 
satirical ;  I  don't  believe  one  word  you  say  ;  how  familiar 
this  Trab,  Trab,  gallop  is ;  they  dance  waltzes  almost  alto 
gether  now.  There  is  Miss  Leigh  talking  to  Mr.  Rake- 
man  ;  I  wonder  if  it  will  turn  out  an  engagement  ?  How' 
can  a  blonde  like  Miss  Black,  wear  such  a  shade  of  purple  ? 
All  women  dislike  flattery,  but  they  like  appreciation. 
What  a  classical  nose  Mrs.  Brown  has,  and  so  white  ;  they 
say  she  powders  ;  how  can  persons  say  such  horrid  things 
about  each  other  ?"  "I  beg  your  pardon  1"  entreats  the  pro 
prietor  of  a  clumsy  foot  which  has  walked  through  Miss 
White's  dress.  "  Certainly,"  returns  the  young  lady,  with 
a  look  of  gratitude  (that  perfection  of  breeding).  "  Mr. 
Saulsbury,  I  must  beg  you  to  escort  me  to  the  dressing 
room." 

Wentworth  led  his  shattered  convoy  to  the  harbor  into 
which  she  put  for  repairs,  and  then  steered  his  way  to  Miss 
Leigh,  to  whom  he  was  engaged  for  the  next  waltz. 

Miss  Leigh  was  a  type  of  a  class  of  New  England  girls 
whose  innocence,  beauty,  and  earnestness  surprise  you 
wherever  you  meet  them,  at  a  ball  or  a  funeral,  at  a  farce 
or  a  tragedy.  They  are  bright,  well  read,  and  of  a  purity 
unsullied  by  a  thought  of  evil ;  had  they  a  sense  of  hu 
mor  and  a  mixture  of  passion  in  their  nature,  they  would 
be  perfect. 


Fair  Harvard.  275 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  you,"  said  Miss  Leigh,  as  wentworth 
bowed  to  her.  ' '  We  were  talking  about  the  Worcester 
races  ;  I  hope  the  stones  they  told  of  the  students  there  are 
not  true/'  she  added,  turning  to  Rakeman,  who  was  stand 
ing  at  her  right. 

' '  Not  at  all,  I  assure  you, "  replied  Rakeman.  ' '  A  Meth 
odist  camp-meeting  could  not  have  been  more  quiet ;  the 
excesses  the  townies  may  have  committed,  of  course  I  do 
not  try  to  excuse." 

' '  I  am  so  glad  to  hear  it ;  I  always  said  it  was  so.  Re 
member  you  are  engaged  to  me  for  the  next  waltz  after  this. " 

"I  shall  forget  everything  before  that,"  returned  Rake 
man,  kindly  leaving  the  field  to  Wentworth. 

' '  What  a  capital  fellow  Rakeman  is, "  said  Wentworth, 
as  his  friend  disappeared  in  the  waves  of  crinoline. 

"I  like  to  hear  you  say  so,"  said  Miss  Leigh,  blushing, 
for  like  all  Southerners  Rakeman  was  a  favorite  with  the 
fair  sex.  - ' '  There  is  something  spirituelle  about  his  face,  I 
think." 

"I  don't  know  so  much  about  these  delicate  shades  of 
character,"  replied  Wentworth.  "I  know  Rakeman  would 
think  nothing  of  risking  his  life  for  a  friend,  or  sharing  his 
last  crust  with  him  ;"  and  our  hero  told  Miss  Leigh  the 
story  of  his  creeping  over  the  ice  two  years  before,  to  which 
she  listened  with  great  interest. 

"I  like  you,  for  liking  your  friends  so  well,"  she  said 
warmly,  when  he  had  ended.  "I  knew  I  was  right;  a 
woman's  instinct  never  deceives  her  :  when  that  Mr.  Sweat- 
rame  speaks  to  me,  it  sends  a  shudder  through  me  :  he 


276  Fair  Harvard. 

seems  to  pride  himself  on  being  dissipated  ;  he  talks  lightly 
of  married  women  flirting." 

''That,  Miss  Leigh,  should  argue  him  a  very  innocent 
fellow.  A  Joseph  likes  to  affect  the  air  of  a  Lovelace  ; 
your  real  Don  Juan  always  wears  the  look  of  a  lamb. 
Have  you  been  skating  to-day  ?" 

' '  Yes,  all  the  afternoon.  I  don't  know  which  I  enjoy 
most,  skating  or  dancing,  both  are  so  full  of  grace  ;  I  should 
like  to  waltz  all  night." 

"It  is  delightful,  Miss  Leigh,  to  find  a  girl  who  enjoys 
such  things  ;  most  of  your  sex  love  nothing  but  hard 
study. " 

* '  How  dare  you  give  a  wrong  turn  to  every  thing  I  say  ? 
I  have  known  men  bright  enough  to  appreciate  women, 
and  men  wicked  enough  to  laugh  at  them,  but  never  any 
one  except  you  who  did  both  ;  it  must  come  from  your 
reading  Thackeray." 

"Do  you  not  like  Thackeray?"  asked  Wentworth. 

"No,  I  admire  him,  but  I  do  not  like  him  ;  I  never  rise 
from  one  of  his  books  without  feeling  less  respect  for  my 
self  and  for  human  nature ;  that  is  a  good  test,  I  think, 
don't  you  ?  and  then  Thackeray  never  seems  to  be  very 
deep." 

"Which  do  women  like  best,  deep  men  or  men  super 
ficially  clever  ?" 

"They  like  deep  men,  of  course,  infinitely  better.  I  pre 
fer  Kingsley  to  Thackeray  ;  his  characters  are  so  manly,  and 
strong,  and  dashing  ;  but  they  don't  wholly  satisfy  me.  I 
respect  men  who  study  and  think,  more  than  men  who  are 


Fair  Harvard.  277 

merely  hardy  and  venturesome  ;  it  is  splendid  to  combine 
the  two.  I  wish  I  were  a  man  and  could  go  out  into  the 
world. " 

"You  should  give  lectures  on  Woman's  Rights,  Miss 
Leigh." 

"  There  is  nothing  I  dislike  so  much  as  strong  minded 
women  :  yet  I  think  that  what  they  say  has  a  great  deal  of 
truth  in  it.  I  do  not  see  why  women  should  not  do  any 
work  for  which  nature  has  fitted  them,  nor  how  they  can 
tell  for  what  they  are  fitted  until  they  try  ;  and  if  they  work. 
I  don't  see  why  they  should  not  get  fair  pay.  But  I  never 
like  to  talk  about  politics  with  men  ;  they  are  never  in 
earnest ;  they  always  treat  women  as  half  goddesses,  and 
half  fools." 

"Heaven  is  my  witness,"  said  Wentworth,  "that  I  have 
not  the  slightest  objection  in  the  world,  to  anybody's  work 
ing  except  myself.  I  should  think  you  philanthropical 
young  ladies  would  take  a  peculiar  pleasure  in  balls,  from 
their  contrast  to  your  ragged  schools,  and  poor  women. 
It  were  almost  worth  while  to  be  good  to  enjoy  the  variety  ; 
it  must  be  so  entertaining  to  see  the  same  human  nature 
in  its  different  dresses  !" 

' '  I  think  I  like  the  poor  better  than  the  rich  :  there  is 
so  much  more  reality  in  their  life ;  I  have  often  regretted 
that  I  was  not  born  in  the  lower  classes,"  said  Miss  Leigh, 
who  would  have  died  of  a  soiled  collar. 

"Hush  !  Hush  !"  said  Wentworth,  laughing.  "  Such 
sentiments  will  produce  a  new  French  Revolution  :  though 
your  head,  Miss  Leigh,  would  look  well  anywhere,  I  think 


278  Fair  Harvard. 

it  looks  better  where  it  is  than  it  would  on  the  end  of  a 
pike !" 

The  grand  march  of  Norma  now  sounded  a  truce  to 
further  warfare,  and  both  armies  flocked  to  their  great 
physician,  the  supper. 

The  brave  bucks  gathered  up  their  shattered  frames  ;  the 
ladies  their  broken  fans,  torn  dresses,  and  wounded  reputa 
tions.  I  have  always  liked  this  last  metaphor,  but  truth 
compels  me  to  confess  that  it  is  here  somewhat  forced, 
since  in  Boston  there  is  little  or  no  scandal ;  society  is 
made  up  of  Josephs  and  Penelopes,  and  personalities  rarely 
rise  above  the  dignity  of  gossip. 

Wentworth  found  a  seat  in  the  supper-room  for  Miss 
Leigh,  who  was  inwardly  complaining  that  her  waltz  with 
Rakeman  had  been  cut  off,  and  then  rushed  forth  into 
space  and  from  it  wrested  two  chairs,  which  he  brought 
back  into  the  hall  for  the  German.  Round  these  he 
knotted  his  handkerchief  lest  some  fiend  in  human  shape 
should  steal  them  away  in  his  absence  ;  and  then  returned 
to  the  supper-room  and  soothed  the  ethereal  appetite  of 
his  partner  with  birds,  ices,  cakes,  and  the  thousand  and 
one  delicacies  of  the  table. 

Among  many  faults  in  his  intercourse  with  the  gentler 
sex,  our  hero  had  one  redeeming  trait,  he  fed  them  well. 
Pretty  youths  whose  aim  in  life  it  is  to  captivate  the 
fair,  remember  this  habit  to  imitate  it.  Nothing  covers 
more  sins,  or  discovers  more  virtues  in  their  eyes,  than 
this  recognition  of  the  fact,  that  though  coming  from  a 
^igher,  they  are  yet  dwellers  in  this  human  sphere.  I 


Fair  Harvard.  279 

once  knew  a  man  who  lost  a  blooming  girl  and  half  a 
million  of  dollars  by  neglect  of  this  simple  rule. 

"If  a  man,"  so  reasoned  the  pretty  casuist  with  the  dar 
ing  logic  of  her  sex,  ' '  will  not  take  the  trouble  to  offer  the 
object  of  his  affections  enough  food,  when  it  is  lying  be 
fore  him,  he  will  at  the  slightest  pinch  leave  his  wife  and 
children  to  starve  to  death."  At  this  horrible  thought, 
Beauty  and  her  fortune  vanished  forever  from  the  eyes  of 
her  broken-hearted  lover. 

Supper  ended,  the  dancers  took  their  seats,  and  the  Ger 
man  began  to  weave  its  mystic  figures  of  beauty.  Oh  ye 
mothers,  who  wish  your  sons  to  sleep  of  nights,  guard 
their  eyes  from  the  sight  of  this  peace-destroying  dance ! 
Grace  is  beauty,  armed  and  in  the  field,  and  her  weap 
ons  are  dipt  in  a  poison  that  drives  tranquillity  and  peace 
far  from  the  couch  of  youth. 

Miss  Campbell,  as  she  melted  from  one  form  of  enchant 
ment  to  another,  seemed  from  some  hidden  fountain  to 
rain  love  and  beauty  around  her. 

There  are  two  classes  of  noble  natures  ;  the  one,  from  an 
ideal  without  itself  works  out  the  actual :  the  other,  from 
the  actual  shapes  for  itself  an  ideal ;  the  latter  climb  slowly 
to  the  heavens,  but  the  former  seem  to  spring  from  the 
very  bosom  of  God. 

Miss  Campbell's  left  hand  rested  lightly  as  a  rose  on 
Wentworth's  shoulder,  and  her  other,  held  in  his  own, 
thrilled  his  whole  frame  with  fire. 

"I  never  saw  you  so  full  of  life,"  he  whispered,  as  his 


280  Fair  Harvard. 

eyes  hung  upon  every  movement  of  the  graceful  girl.     A 
shadow  flitted  over  Miss  Campbell's  face. 

"It  is  strange,''  she  said  half  to  herself;  "when  saddest 
one  often  appears  most  happy  :  to  forget  our  grief,  we 
throw  ourselves  into  what  is  without  us,  into  our  ideals, 
with  a  spirit  that  deceives  every  one  but  ourselves  :  sorrow 
thus  becomes  the  mother  of  the  highest  art,  which  is  always 
objective —  What  am  I  saying!"  she  added  with  a  forced 
laugh,  observing  the  surprised  look  of  the  boy.  ' '  Do  not 
let  us  go  back  to  our  seats  yet :  there  is  Mr.  Pitt  walking 
towards  them ;  I  cannot  breathe  in  that  vacuum  ;  if  he 
speaks  to  me  I  shall  die." 

"I  thought,  Miss  Campbell,  that  Mr.  Pitt  was  great 
favorite  with  ladies." 

"Far  more  than  that,"  she  replied,  "he  is  a  parlor 
Samson ;  with  a  jaw  of  an  ass  he  has  slain  thousands  :  I 
don't  see  how  he  does  it ;  they  die,  I  suppose,  like  kittens 
in  an  air-pump." 

"Your  figures,"  said  Wentworth  with  a  look  of  humor; 
seem  a  little  mixed  ;  but  they  are  both  very  good." 

"I  can't  think,"  mused  Miss  Campbell,  "why  Mr.  Pitt 
should  devote  himself  with  so  much  earnestness  to  being  a 
fool." 

"Perhaps  he  has  a  divine  gift  for  it,  and  thinks  it  would 
be  impious  not  to  obey  his  genius. " 

' '  Very  likely,  and  yet, "  she  added,  softening,  ' '  I  have  a 
sort  of  kindly  parental  feeling  for  him,  for  I  have  recreated 
him  three  separate  times.  When  he  was  introduced  to  me 
last  winter,  he  could  only  be  said  to  live  by  a  bold  meta- 


Fair  Harvard.  28J 

phor  :  I  gave  him  an  idea  that  kept  him  alive  for  three 
months  :  when  the  vital  power  of  that  was  exhausted  he 
came  to  me  for  a  second,  and  a  third  ;  but  I  am  tired  of  it, 
and  think  I  shall  let  him  die,  or  compromise  with  death  by 
marriage.  There,  he  has  gone  to  speak  to  Miss  Leigh  who 
hates  him  ;  let  us  sit  down  ;  I  am  almost  tired.  Will  you 
not  fan  me — not  yourself  I  don't  mean,  you  monster. 
See  what  a  strict  surveillance  Miss  Otis  keeps  over  me," 
and  Miss  Campbell  glanced  towards  the  sister  of  herjiancee, 
who  was  seated  a  short  distance  from  them. 

"Do  you  not  know  her,  Mr.  Saulsbury  ?  She  is  well 
worth  your  study ;  she  is  the  model  of  a  great  many  of  our 
most  fashionable  ladies  here ;  I  have  tried  her  on  every 
subject  in  the  world,  and  the  only  one  that  interests  her  is 
the  genealogy  of  about  a  hundred  of  what  she  calls  old 
Boston  families.  She  can  tell  you  to  a  man  whom  Mrs. 
Green,  Grey,  Brown,  or  White  did  marry,  whom  they  did 
not  marry,  whom  they  could  have  married,  whom  they 
should  have  married  ;  the  dresses  that  won  the  victory  ;  the 
children,  rattles,  measles,  prospects ;  really  it  frightens  me 
even  to  think  how  much  she  knows.  She  looks  down  with 
infinite  contempt  on  any  one  who  has  not  mastered  this 
branch  of  learning,  and  has  a  very  slight  opinion  of  any 
one  who  knows  anything  in  addition  to  it,  as  a  person  who 
has  scattered  his  powers." 

"Who  is  that  gentleman   with  whom  she  is  talking?" 
asked  Wentworth. 

"That  is  Mr.    Hapsburgh  ;  he  is   one  of  our  greatest 
poets  ;  he  is  the  mouthpiece  of  a  set  of  men  here,  who  think 


282  Fair  Harvard. 

because  they  know  enough  to  eat  with  a  fork,  and  not  to 
drink  out  of  a  finger  bowl,  that  they  form  the  proudest  aris 
tocracy  in  the  world.  This  prejudice  carries  him  so  far 
that,  though  nothing  if  not  witty,  he  has  never  allowed  a 
parvenu  jest  to  appear  in  all  his  writings." 

"I  suppose,"  said  Wentworth,  "that  any  true  Christian 
gentleman  would  rather  be  suspected  of  parricide  than  of 
drinking  out  of  a  finger  bowl." 

"I  forgot,"  answered  Miss  Campbell,  "that  you  were  a 
poet ;  I  remember  some  charming  verses  you  once  sent 
me,"  she  added,  lowering  her  voice.  "I  know  them  by 
heart.  I  wonder  why  every  Yankee  does  not  become  a 
poet,  since  a  poet  of  all  men  practises  the  highest  economy. 
A  common  person  when  he  is  betrayed,  insulted,  or  wound 
ed  squanders  all  his  grief  without  getting  anything  in  return. 
A  poet  is  no  such  spendthrift ;  a  friend's  treason,  a  broken 
heart,  a  cruel  wrong,  all  these  things  he  knows  have  their 
market  value.  'I  will  puff  them  well/  he  says  to  himself, 
'and  barter  them  for  a  coat,  or  a  hair  brush/  of  which  he 
often  has  need.  After  all,  I  am  not  so  sure  that  I  would 
not  prefer  you  to  be  a  lawyer  ;  I  love  that  profession  ;  they 
are  all  so  charitable  ;  a  thief,  a  lawyer  looks  upon  as  a 
practical  disciple  of  Fourier ;  a  murderer  as  an  over-zealous 
follower  of  Malthus.  Whatever  you  are,  however,  I  want 
all  my  friends  to  be  distinguished. " 

' '  Do  not  fever  yourself,  Miss  Campbell,  about  my  future 
career,"  replied  Wentworth,  charmed  with  the  girl's  raillery. 
"I  am  resolved  to  become  a  philosopher;  last  night  I 


Fair  Harvard.  283 

heard  one  of  our  greatest  thinkers  lecture,  and  that  deter 
mined  me." 

"What  was  the  lecture  about?"  asked  Miss  Campbell. 

"The  subject  was  the  plus  of  growth.  Do  not  you  wish 
to  hear  the  exordium  ?  It  was  very  striking,  and  I  remem 
ber  every  word  of  it.  '  'Twas  remarked, '  he  began ;  '  'twas 
remarked  by  Plato  or  Thoreau,  I  forget  which,  but  the  re 
mark  is  worthy  of  either,  that  vagueness  is  the  first  element 
of  clearness,  and  that  all  growth  must  be  upwards,  down 
wards,  or  in  some  other  direction.  Take  the  end  of  a 
horse's  tail  between  your  teeth  ;  draw  back  a  few  steps  ;  the 
horse  kicks  ;  the  kick  is  fatal ;  spring  upon  his  haunches, 
and  you  are  safe.  Tis  thus  with  truth  :  pluck  the  wild 
rose ;  but  God  made  the  thorn  :  pluck  the  thorn  also. 
This  is  the  whole  duty  of  man,  to  pull  the  tail  from  the 
tad-pole,  to  break  the  chrysalis  for  the  butterfly,  to  give 
the  wings  of  Pegasus  to  the  hack.  Every  soul  wears  the 
pinions  of  an  angel  if  it  will  but  unfurl  them.  Why  do  we 
not  soar  ?  Why  are  our  eyes  under  the  soles  of  our  feet  ? 
The  heavens  are  above  us  ;  we  have  made  them.  The  least 
of  us  is  a  Shakespeare,  the  least  of  us  is  a  god;  nay,  the 
least  of  us  has  created  Shakespeares,  the  least  of  us  has 
created  gods/  ' 

"Those two  words,  '  Our  Father/  "  said  Miss  Campbell, 
with  a  seriousness  that  forgot  time  and  place,  ' '  not  apropos 
of  what  you  were  saying,  I  don't  mean,  but  of  nothing,  are 
worth  all  the  philosophies  and  creeds  that  ever  were  writ 
ten."  A  shade  passed  over  the  girl's  face;  her  spirits 


284  Fair  Harvard. 

seemed  to  droop  and  her  gaiety  to  give  way,  as  she  thought 
of  the  part  she  was  soon  to  act. 

"  How  the  goddess  of  respectability  beams  upon  us  here  !" 
she  said  a  little  later,  with  bitterness.  "And  what  a  cruel 
purpose  she  carries  under  her  smile  ;  she  dips  her  pen  in 
the  blood  of  the  weak  to  write  her  laws ;  I  don't  know 
which  I  respect  least,  the  vices  or  the  virtues  of  her  subjects." 

"Van,"  said  Wentworth,  surprised,  but  always  ready  to 
follow  the  vein  of  any  one's  conversation,  "Van  says  that 
next  to  sinning  themselves,  the  greatest  pleasure  people  have 
is  to  detect  and  abuse  sin  in  others  ;  that  in  the  latter  case 
it  is  the  thought  of  the  sin  that  gives  them  pleasure ;  the 
abuse  is  merely  a  cloak  to  hide  their  impertinence  for  med 
dling  in  others'  concerns,  though  they  prefer  to  call  it 
viitue. " 

"  I  hate  Society  and  her  cruel  laws,"  said  Miss  Campbell, 
with  earnestness. 

"There  is  Mr.  Pitt  bringing  you  your  fifth  bouquet,"  ex 
claimed  Wentworth. 

"The  angel !"  cried  our  heroine,  with  enthusiasm,  and 
her  spirits  rose  at  the  graceful  tribute,  which  always  touches 
a  woman's  heart  at  the  altar,  in  the  ball  room,  or,  I  doubt 
not,  in  the  coffin. 

The  night  danced  on  more  slowly  ;  the  spectators  began 
to  dwindle .  Pippins  retreated  with  his  four  mots  in  good 
order;  the  more  venerable  bucks  had  already  retired  to 
heal  the  torture  of  the  boot  and  the  other  mortifications  of 
the  flesh,  which  fashion  inflicts  upon  her  votaries;  even 
the  heroic  brood  of  pelicans  upon  the  sofas  grew  weary  ;  a 


Fair  Harvard.  285 

mother's  love,  strongest  and  holiest  of  passions,  alone 
propped  up  their  falling  eyelids.  Miss  Campbell  had  never 
achieved  a  greater  success  ;  in  the  flower  figure  she  had  re 
ceived  seven  bouquets,  which  was  three  more  than  any 
other  girl  in  the  room,  and  gained  her  no  little  envy  and 
admiration.  Girls  prize  these  distinctions  as  highly  as 
knights  their  garters,  and  perhaps  as  justly.  At  four  the 
ball  broke  up/' 

"  Miss  Campbell  has  flirted  shamefully  to-night,"  whis 
pered  Miss  Otis  to  her  brother,  as  he  was  leading  her  to 
Mrs.  Morris. 

"I  must  request  you,''  replied  the  latter,  who  was  a 
thorough  gentleman;  "never  again  to  make  any  dispar 
aging  remark  about  Miss  Campbell ;  it  is  insulting  to  me, 
and  only  makes  me  feel  less  respect  for  you. " 

' '  Your  carriage  is  ready, ''  he  said  a  few  minutes  later, 
to  \\isfiancee,  and  walked  down  before  her  in  silence. 

"Good  night,  Nell,"  he  said,  gently  but  with  a  touch 
of  reproach  in  his  voice,  as  he  seated  her  in  her  carriage, 
and  then,  holding  her  hand  a  moment,  stooped  down  to 
kiss  it. 

Miss  Campbell  drew  back  her  hand.  "I  have  been  re 
quested  to  give  you  this,"  she  said,  with  a  voice  that  tried 
to  be  calm,  but  was  choking  with  emotion,  and  she  handed 
him  a  letter  ;  Mr.  Otis  took  the  letter  mechanically,  shut  the 
door,  and  the  coachman  drove  away. 

"That  he  should  dare  accuse  me  of  flirting  !"  said  Miss 
Campbell  to  herself,  as  she  in  vain  tried  to  check  her  sob- 


286  Fair  Harvard. 

bing.  Reaching  her  home,  she  threw  herself  upon  her 
bed  and  there  lay  through  the  weary  hours,  her  long  hair 
falling  over  her  throbbing  breast.  Now  that  she  had  forever 
separated  herself  from  her  lover,  she  felt  how  much  she  had 
really  cared  for  him,  and  half  regretted  the  act  into  which 
her  pride  had  hurried  her. 

In  his  distant  chamber  her  lover  sat  gazing  at  the  letter, 
and  the  two  rings  -it  contained.  The  letter  was  short, 
and  stated  that  Miss  Campbell  had  heard  of  his  conduct, 
and  that  of  course  their  engagement  must  be  considered  at 
an  end  ;  that  she  owed  it  to  the  love  she  had  once  borne 
him  never  to  disclose  the  cause.  The  poor  fellow  read  the 
letter  over  and  over  again  with  fresh  pain  ;  he  then  took 
one  of  the  rings,  on  which  were  the  words,  ' '  Celeste,  from 
J.  E.  O.,"  and  with  a  curse  at  the  treachery  of  his  mistress, 
opened  the  window  and  threw  the  ring  into  the  street ;  he 
again  returned  to  his  seat,  kissed  the  cruel  words  of  the 
woman  he  truly  loved,  and  again  arose,  pacing  up  and 
down  the  room  in  bitter  grief. 

Wentworth,  however,  had  mounted  his  tilbury  with  Van 
and  Rakeman,  and  warmed  his  way  over  the  cold  bridge 
with  songs  and  jests,  and  was  now  fast  asleep  with  pleasant 
music  ringing  in  his  ears,  unconscious  of  the  tears  and 
sighs  that  were  raining  and  breathing  in  breezy  Boston. 

But  shapely  Celeste,  lovely  cause  of  so  great  evils,  that 
very  evening,  untired  by  her  morning's  acting,  had  been 
taking  with  ravishment  the  applauding  eyes  of  a  crowded 
audience  in  a  neighboring  theatre,  and  showering  grace 


Fair  Harvard.  287 

and  beauty  around  her,  had  gathered  the  bouquets  thrown 
at  her  feet.  Thus  turns  the  great  grindstone  of  the 
world,  and  grinds  of  some  the  axes,  but  the  noses  of 
others. 


. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

"  Intervenerant  quidam  amici,  propter  quos  major  fumus  fieret :  .  .  .  . 
Varius  uobie  sermo  fuit,  ut  in  convivio,  nullam  rem  usque  ad  cxitum  adducens, 
sed  aliuude  alio  transilieus. ' ' 

|RUTH  is  a  slippery  baggage/7  said  Hayward, 
who,  with  other  friends,  was  in  Wentworth's 
room  early  in  the  evening  of  the  "Seniors' 
benefit,"  at  the  Mush  and  Milk  Club;  "She  can  only  be 
held  by  the  three  members  of  a  syllogism,  as  an  eel  by  the 
three  fingers  of  a  fish-wife. " 

"We  know  not  what  we  know,  nor  of  that  fact  are  we 
conscious,''  said  the  gentle  Desdemona,  who  was  lying  in 
a  window-seat  and  displayed  a  very  pretty  foot  and  ankle. 
As  she  spoke,  Desdemona  threw  her  Hamilton's  Meta 
physics  into  a  corner  of  the  room  and  lighted  a  fresh  cigar. 
'  *  lago,  '*  she  then  remarked,  taking  from,  her  bosom  a  spotted 
handkerchief  of  great  size,  "though  to  be  sure  something 
of  a  rascal,  was  what  we  should  now-2-days  call  a  very 
smart  man." 

Our  friends,  as  the  studies  of  the  year  had  led  them,  had, 
in  the  interim  between  their  college  gossip,  been  dissolving 
the  universe  into  a  'dew ;  metaphysics  and  logic  were  their 
blow-pipe  and  test-tube  :  they  had  doubted  matter ;  they 
had  doubted  mind  ;  strangest  of  doubts,  they  had  doubted 


Fair  Harvard.  289 

their  own  identity  !  Happy  skeptics  !  They  had  no  cre 
ditors — sad  but  sure  cure  of  this  infirmity. 

' '  These  metaphysicians, "  said  Wentworth,  who  had  been 
arguing  against  his  friends,  and  who  always  maintained  a 
bigoted  belief  in  his  own  existence  at  least — "these  meta 
physicians  sharpen  their  ideas  down  until  they  reduce  them, 
and  not  the  universe,  to  nothing.  They  don't  seem  to  me 
to  be  much  wiser  than  common  folks.  Even  in  definitions 
\fC  often  meet  with  as  nice  differences  among  the  ignorant 
as  among  the  learned.  Servants,  in  naming  doors,  draw  as 
fine  distinctions  as  the  German  professors  with  their  subject 
and  object.  If  a  house  has  two  front  and  two  back  doors, 
they  style  them  the  front-front  door,  the  front-back  door, 
the  back-front  door,  and  the  back-back  door. " 

"I  never  felt  so  encouraged  since  I  came  to  college," 
said  Bowyer,  whose  bulk  lay  stretched  out  upon  a  sofa, 
wreathed  in  peaceful  smoke,  ' '  as  when  I  learnt  that  the 
highest  studies  were  nothing  more  than  mental  gymnastics. 
I  am  sure  that  in  that  case  I  must  be  a  greater  proficient  in 
them  than  any  of  our  shadowy  professors/'  and  the  "oar" 
doubled  up  an  arm,  whose  mere  relaxation  would  have 
placed  half  the  College  Faculty  hors-de-combat. 

"I  think  that  theory  of  Hamilton  is  false,"  rejoined 
Wentworth.  "The  belief  that  the  search  after  truth,  not 
truth  itself,  is  the  object  of  life,  is  suicidal ;  no  one  searches 
with  any  heart  after  that  which  he  does  not  much  care  to 
find  ;  no  one  cares  to  find  what  he  does  not  think  much 
worth  the  finding.  Truth  is  in  itself  a  good,  not  an  ignis 
fatuus  to  lead  us  dancing  over  bogs  and  quagmires,  to  en- 


290  Fair  Harvard. 

large  our  muscles.  God,  from  the  centre  of  the  universe, 
rays  out  his  physical,  intellectual,  and  moral  laws  ;  our 
aim  is  to  place  ourselves  at  that  centre,  and  as  far  as  our 
finite  powers  permit,  to  see  all  things  as  the  calm  eye  of 
God  sees  them  ;  to  know  and  embody  the  highest  truth,  is 
the  one  aim  worthy  of  an  immortal  soul." 

"  This  is  a  dog-day  of  a  conversation,"  said  Desdemona, 
who  was  no  other  than  Van,  tripping  to  a  chair,  where  lay 
what  looked  like  a  baby  wrapped  up  in  a  blanket,  but 
proved  to  be  a  lump  of  ice,  which  she  placed  in  a  towel, 
and  pounded  into  small  pieces  prophetic  of  cobblers. 

"  There  goes  Sweatrame  to  the  Mush  and  Milk  rooms/' 
said  Rakeman,  who  was  lying  on  the  window  seat,  opposite 
Van's,  and  whose  face  wore  a  look  of  melancholy.  ' '  Do 
you  remember,  Van,  Freshman  year,  when  Dummer  and 
Sweatrame  used  to  go  on  '  benders '  together  ?  Wine 
always  attacked  Sweatrame's  knees,  but  spared  his  head, 
while  Dummer's  legs  were  firm  long  after  his  head  was 
gone  ;  when  both  were  drunk,  together  they  formed  one 
sober  man.  After  a  spree,  Sweatrame  always  mounted  on 
Dummer's  shoulders  and  steered  him  safely  home.  They 
had  thus  all  the  advantages  of  being  drunk  and  sober  at 
the  same  time.  How  those  good  old  times  come  back  to 
us!"  he  added,  musingly.  "Don't  you  recollect  Robin, 
when  you  were  a  Freshman,  how  you  used  to  wait  in  Bos 
ton  fur  the  twelve  o'clock  car  ?  I  have  known  you  to  stand 
on  the  sidewalk  two  or  three  hours  for  no  other  purpose  ; 
you  thought  it  was  so  'nuttish'  to  say,  '  I  came  out  in  the 
last  car  last  night.'  " 


Fair  Harvard.  291 

"I  don't  recollect  anything  of  the  kind,"  replied  Robin, 
rather  ruffled  ;  "I  remember  the  first  day  \ve  came  to  col 
lege  your  running  to  prayers  at  the  first  bell ;  a  dozen 
Sophomores  got  up  early  to  watch  you. " 

"It  was  that  rascally  Brandreth,"  said  Rakeman.  "  He 
told  me  to  be  sure  to  be  in  the  Chapel  before  the  first  bell 
was  over ;  I  thought  I  was  late. " 

"Holloa,  boys!"  cried  Van,  "it  is  half  past  seven;  I 
must  be  off;  the  play  begins  at  eight,"  and  Desdemona 
gathered  up  her  skirts,  threw  the  stump  of  her  cigar  into  the 
grate,  clapped  Rakeman  a  virtuous  box  on  the  ear,  that 
nearly  beheaded  him,  and  fled  from  his  embraces  pursued 
by  Hayward. 

"Emmett,"  said  Wentworth,  after  Van  had  gone,  "Em- 
mett  told  me  the  other  day  of  his  attempt  to  cast  his  vote 
against  us  at  the  Class  Elections.  '  When  the  meeting 
came  off  I  was  lying/  he  said,  'in  my  house  in  fragrant 
Brighton,  prostrate  from  the  attack  of  a  fever  and  two 
physicians.  One  of  them  was  just  making  his  diagnosis  ; 
'When  I  place  my  finger  thus,  you  feel  a  severe  pain — 
what  ?  no  pain  !  that  is  in  itself  a  dangerous  symptom/ 
Suddenly  Cade  burst  into  the  room.  '  Zounds,  Emmett !' 
he  cried  out  to  me,  '  how  have  you  the  leisure  to  be  sick 
in  such  a  justling  time  !  We  need  but  one  vote  to  over 
throw  the  Mushes  ;  one  more  vote  and  the  class-poet  is 
ours.  Sickness  !  Death !  These  are  names.  Virtue ! 
Religion  !  Freedom  !  These  are  realities  !  If  you  must 
die,  die  in  a  blaze  of  glory  voting  against  the  Mushes  !' 
with  these  words  Cade  hurried  me  into  his  tilbury  ;  the 


292  Fair  Harvard. 

steed  felt  that  he  was  bearing  the  fortunes  of  the  anti- 
Mushes  ;  he  shot  over  the  road  :  the  Flying  Childers  was 
but  a  snail  to  him.  In  a  few  minutes,  borne  on  Cade's 
shoulder,  wrapped  in  a  blanket,  I  burst  into  the  Institute. 
It  was  too  late;  the  voting  was  over;  the  poet  of  the  Mushes 
was  making  his  speech  of  acceptance.  It  was  a  brave 
effort,  though,  and  nearly  cost  me  my  life. ' " 

' '  How  can  you  speak  to  such  scrubs  ? — when  they  told 
such  lies  about  us,  too,"  said  Robin.  ''They  said  I  tried 
to  bribe  a  man  with  an  oyster  stew  to  vote  for  the  Mushes  ; 
I  would  not  demean  myself  by  bowing  to  them." 

"  These  social  distinctions  are  matter  for  tailors,  not  for 
scholars,"  rejoined  Wentworth.  "We  ought  to  have  a 

professor  here  to  lecture  ou  the  naked  man" Wentworth 

was  interrupted  by  Rakeman,  who  fetched  a  deep  sigh. 

His  friends,  who  knew  its  cause,  said  nothing  for  some 
moments. 

"Will  you  not  take  something  to  eat?"  Robin  at  length 
gently  entreated  him.  "It  will  do  you  good." 

Rakeman  glanced  at  the  oily  olives,  the  strenuous 
crackers,  the  restless  cheese,  and  the  golden  sherry  ranged 
upon  the  table,  but  shook  his  head. 

"I  did  not  make  a  good  impression  on  Miss  Leigh  last 
night,  I'm  sure  of  it,"  he  muttered,  and  unloosed  another 
sigh. 

"Tut:  tut;  man!"  said  Wentworth,  "you  Southerners 
always  succeed  with  women  ;  you  have  that  reckless,  care 
less  manner  that  throws  them  off  their  guard,  and  lays 
open  their  hearts  to  your  thrusts,  before  they  know  it" 


Fair  Harvard.  293 

Rakeman  only  shook  his  head  ;  despondency  deepened 
on  his  face ;  love  was  fast  bringing  his  wild  spirit  to 
slavery.  Yet  he  would  not  yield  without  a  struggle  ;  he 
had  learnt  from  Western  trappers  to  fight  fire  with  fire  ;  he 
summoned  against  the  flame  of  love,  the  gentle  but  power 
ful  ally,  tobacco.  He  drew  from  his  pocket  a  huge  red  clay 
pipe  ;  scarce  twice  six  chosen  Freshmen,  such  Freshmen  as 
Harvard  now  produces,  could  have  sustained  it  upon  their 
shoulders.  This  Rakeman  filled  with  Herculean  perique 
and  with  heroical  puffs  strove  to  smoke  Dan  Cupid  from 
the  hole  in  his  heart,  in  which  he  had  burrowed.  He 
threw  himself  back  into  the  window-seat :  his  eyes  sought 
the  ceiling ;  he  smoked  and  sighed,  and  sighed  and  smoked 
in  sadness ;  his  pipe  glowed  like  a  volcano  ;  Empedocles 
might  have  sought  immortality  down  its  fiery  crater. 

"I  have  been  through  it,  myself:  I  know  what  it  is," 
said  the  warbler  feelingly. 

"It  is  the  suspense,  the  suspense,  that  is  killing  me," 
groaned  Rakeman,  ' '  If  I  only  knew,  what  I  dare  not  ask. " 

11 1  condole  with  you,  with  all -my  heart,"  murmured 
Robin,  "Tis  terrible!  When  the  fit  was  on  me,  I  tasted 
nothing  for  three  hours.  Can  I  not  do  anything  for  you  ? 
Shall  I  not  sing  to  you  ?" 

"  Da  !     Do  !     Robin,"  sighed  Rakeman. 

' '  Shall  I  sing  that  sweet  song, 

'  Come  away,  come  away,  Death, 
And  in  sad  cypres  let  me  be  laid "" 

"Yes,  yes." 

"Shall  I  sing  it  as  if  I  meant  it?" 


294  Fair  Harvard. 

The  poor  victim  bowed  his  head.  The  songster  pressed 
the  sufferer's  hand,  and  poured  forth  his  softest  notes  into 
his  ear.  * 

"What  is  the  world  but  an  empty  pipe,  when  love  does 
not  fill  it?"  said  Rakeman,  knocking  the  ashes  from  the 
bowl  as  Robin  ended.  "My  heart  feels  lighter." 

"You  are  growing  very  spooney/'  said  Wentworth  ; 
"  the  play  at  the  Mush  and  Milk  must  have  begun, ''and 
he  left  his  friends  and  walked  to  the  society's  rooms, 
whither  they  soon  followed  him. 

"I  congratulate  you  on  your  success,  to-night,  Van," 
said  Wentworth  to  his  chum,  after  their  return  from  the 
plays  and  supper  at  the  Club.  "You  are  our  American 
Siddons  !  Your  neck  is  the  fairest  sight ;  and  that  sweet 
smile  you  wore,  when  Othello  made  at  you  with  the  poker; 
'twas  ravishing  ;  you  would  make  a  very  dangerous  woman. " 

"I  saw  Mr.  Otis  out  here,  to-night,"  said'  Van;  "I 
wonder  what  made  Miss  Campbell  throw  him  over ;  every 
one,  I  hear,  blames  her  for  it. " 

"I  don't  know,  I'm  sure,"  replied  Wentworth.  "It  has 
made  her  very  sad  and  unhappy  :  as  I  know  nothing  about 
her  reasons,  I  don't  form  any  opinion  on  the  subject." 

"  I.  wouldn't  give  a  fig  for  the  opinions  of  society  about 
it,"  said  Van;  "a  thousand  blind  persons  can't  see  any 
farther  than  one.  Why  don't  you  go  in  and  win  her?" 

"I  am  afraid  to  ask  her,"  said  Wentworth,  "I  feel  that 
the  happiness  of  my  life  depends  on  her  answer. " 

"Nonsense  !"  replied  Van,  "don't  have  such  a  feeling. 
If  you  lose  the  girl,  it  will  probably  be  because  you  love 


Fair  Harvard.  295 

her  too  much  ;  a  woman  never  loves  a  man  who  makes 
himself  cheap  :  she  wants  some  one  to  look  up  to,  some 
one  to  command  her,  some  one,  as  she  grows  older,  to 
abuse  her.  Women  in  their  hearts  admire  a  Bluebeard 
or  a  Henry  VIII.  more  than  a  Bayard.  Still,  perhaps  it  is 
better  to  combine  the  two  methods  :  let  them  feel  that  at 
any  moment  you  may  off  with  their  heads,  but  that  mean 
while  you  will  treat  them  with  all  gentleness." 

"With  such  a  counsellor  in  the  cabinet,  who  could  fai] 
in  the  field,"  said  Wentworth,  good  humoredly. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

1  Ad  restirn  res  redit  mihi  quiderr  planissume." 

1  Ergo  cum  tenuem  fuero  mutatus  iu  umbram 
Carididaque  ossa  super  nigra  favilla  tcget, 
Ante  meum  veniat  longos  iiicorapta  capillos 
Et  fleat  ante  meuin  nisesta  Nseera  rogum." 

[OU  ought  not  to  do  it,  Nell,"  said  Miss  Leigh  to 
her  cousin  the  evening  of  class-day,  as  the  two 
girls  were  standing  upon  Mrs.  Morris's  lawn. 

"Women,  Amy," replied  Miss  Campbell,  "are  born  to 
flirt  as  the  sparks  fly  upward.  Don't  look  so  serious ;  there 
is  no  danger,  and  if  it  should  happen  it  would  not  do  him 
much  harm,"  she  added  in  jest;  "it  would  be  a  sort  of 
vaccination  to  keep  the  real  disease  from  being  too  violent. ' 

"That  is  the  very  reason  it  is  so  wrong,  Nell,"  said  Miss 
Leigh  lowering  her  voice  ;  "it  takes  from  a  man  the  pow 
er  of  ever  after  enjoying  the  noblest  passion. " 

"Have  you  turned  physician,  Miss  Campbell?"  asked 
Wentworth,  who  had  caught  her  words  as  he  came  forward 
to  speak  to  his  friends.  "How  many  hast  thou  killed  to 
day  ?" 

"Some  fourteen,  a  trifle,  a  trifle,"  answered  Miss  Camp 
bell.  "Tell  me,  Mr.  Saulsbury,  who  were  the  characters 
that  Mr.  Gowan  sketched  in  your  class  oration  ?" 

' '  The  rowing  man  was  Bowyer,  the  fast  man  Sweatrame, 
the  scholar  Hayward,  and  the  singing  man  Ayres  ;  I  can't 
guess  the  others." 


Fair  Harvard.  297 

The  conversation  was  here  interrupted  by  one  Mrs. 
Field,  who  appears  for  the  first  and  last  time  upon  this 
stage. 

"  I  wish  to  ask  you,  Miss  Campbell,  if  you  will  excuse 
the  question/'  she  said,  drawing  the  girl  aside,  ';  why  you 
broke  off  your  engagement  with  Mr.  Otis  ?" 

The  roses  fell  from  Miss  Campbell's  cheeks  ;  her  eyes 
like  mangolds  shot  forth  jets  of  flame. 

"  My  dear  madam,"  she  replied  in  her  sweetest  voice, 
"Mr.  Otis  had  ceased  to  amuse  me." 

Mrs.  Field  turned  away  and  always  afterwards  spoke  of 
our  heroine  as  the  most  heartless  of  women. 

Shortly  after  this  inquiring  lady  had  retired,  Rakeman 
came  up  and  carried  off  Miss  Leigh  to  the  President's 
Reception. 

' '  I  am  glad  you  do  not  want  to  go  to  the  Reception, " 
said  Wentworth,  as  the  other  guests  followed  Rakeman. 
"  It  is  pleasanter  here  than  suffering  the peine  forte  et  dure," 
and  he  ran  into  the  house  and  brought  out  a  seat. 

"Thank  you  very  much,"  said  Miss  Campbell,  "I  am 
tired  from  going  to  the  spreads  and  dances.  How  pretty 
the  lanterns  look  through  the  trees  !  they  seem  like  fire 
flies  in  the  hair  of  a  Southern  beauty.  Do  you  not  feel  sad 
at  leaving  so  pleasant  a  place  ?  Yet  it  must  be  glorious  to 
go  out  into  the  world  and  fight  for  its  prizes.  A  woman  has 
no  career  open  to  her  except  that  of  a  martyr  ;  I  could  have 
stabbed  that  woman  for  what  she  said  to  me ;  Hawthorne 
says  that  there  is  nothing  tragic  in  America  to  write  about  ; 
but  lift  the  veil  that  covers  society,  how  many  women  do 


298  Fair  Harvard. 

you  see  dying  from  the  poison  that  lurks  in  their  social  life  ? 
Women  of  high  aims,  what  sympathy  do  they  meet  from 
the  world  ?  They  are  abandoned  to  the  censure  and  mal 
ice  of  prudes  and  rakes.  The  souls  of  such  women  'starve 
in  ice  !'  They  cannot  tell  what  it  is  that  makes  them 
wretched  ;  they  cannot  point  out  any  single  word,  or  act, 
or  wrong,  but  their  disease  is  none  the  less  fatal.  The  air  ! 
you  cannot  see,  nor  taste,  nor  touch  it,  but  it  holds  your 
life  and  death  in  its  power."  She  checked  herself  in  the 
bitter  strain  Mrs.  Field's  insolent  question  had  provoked. 

''How  romantic  everything  looks  to-night,"  she  said, 
looking  around  her. 

"You  look  like  Circe,"  said  Wentworth,  thinking  of  her, 
not  of  her  words,  and  his  eye  wandered  over  her  dress, 
which  was  of  the  color  in  which  the  fields  set  their  flowers, 
and  the  sea  clothes  its  gems. 

"  Have  I  transformed  you  ?  I  will  disenchant  you/'  she 
said  .pleasantly,  and  sprinkled  a  few  drops  of  cologne 
over  the  boy.  "If  the  Father  of  the  Universe  originally 
made  you  a  goose,'' — "  Bird,"  said  Wentworth,  "don't  be 
so  concrete.  It  is  more  artistic  but  not  half  so  flattering. " 

' '  You  have  destroyed  the  charm, "  said  the  girl  with  a 
shake  of  her  head ;  "I  fear  you  will  always  remain  what 
you  are.  How  well  the  college  songs  sound  here  in  the 
distance.  You  ought  to  be  with  your  friends  and  not 
flattering  me  at  their  expense.  They  are  singing  Fair 
Harvard,  what  a  charming  song  it  is. 

'  Believe  me  if  all  those  endearing  young  charms.' 

I  wish  we  had  Cousin  Amy  here ;  we  would  make  her  sing 


Fair  Harvard.  299 

for  us ;  what  a  sweet  voice  she  has  !  She  is  one  of  the  few 
women  I  know  who  are  true  friends  to  other  women.  It 
is  rare  to  find  an  honorable  woman,  I  think,  don't  you ;' 
You  would,  if  you  knew  them  better.  If  I  were  a  man  1 
should  fall  in  love  with  her ;  she  is  so  true  and  good. 
Why  do  you  laugh  ?  I  do  not  like  you  for  that.  She  is 
not  like  most  good  persons  ;  their  goodness  shows  itself  in 
condemning  their  fellows  without  a  trial  ;  it  is  but  the  ac 
complice  of  bolder  evil  which  gives  it  the  cue." 

The  girl's  lips  quivered  ;  she  was  thinking  of  the  unjust 
things  that  had  been  said  of  her. 

"  I  did  not  laugh  unkindly, "  said  Wentworth.  "  It  cuts 
me  to  hear  you  talk  so  wildly.  The  world  is  very  beauti 
ful,  and  human  nature  grand  and  noble ;  and  you,  Miss 
Campbell " 

"  I  did  not  mean  to  wound  you,"  said  the  girl,  quickly, 
"I  spoke  hastily;  I  beg  your  pardon.  Will  you  not  call 
me  Nell  ?  Miss  Campbell  seems  so  distant.  You  promised 
me  a  long  time  ago  to  be  my  friend  ;  you  have  broken 
your  promise,  but  will  you  not  mend  it  ?  mother  says 
friendship  is  impossible  between  men  and  women  ;  but  I 
do  not  see  why.  I  want  friends  whom  I  can  trust ;  I  feel 
so  alone  of  late.  You  are  different  from  the  rest ;  you 
are  so  loyal  a  friend,  I  hear.  Promise  me  to  be  my  friend, 
will  you  not?''  The  boy  tried  to  speak,  but  his  tongue 
was  chained.  Suddenly  his  life  passed  from  his  keeping  ; 
he  lived  and  breathed  only  in  the  beautiful  woman  before 
him. 

"  Friend  !"  he  cried,  his  passion  at  length  rinding  words, 


300  Fair  Harvard. 

11  friend  !  You  are  my  life,  my  soul  1"  He  caught  her  hand 
to  cover  it  with  kisses. 

"Miss  Campbell's  snowy  skin  stained  with  scarlet; 
then,  as  when  the  foam  breaks  over  a  bed  of  coral,  she 
turned  as  suddenly  white. 

"  What  have  I  done?"  she  cried,  as  the  boy  sank  at  her 
feet.  It  cannot  be ;  I  did  not  think  you  loved  me ;  I 
thought  you  were  cold  and — and  like  a  friend,  Mr.  Sauls- 
bury.  Wentworth,  do  forgive  rne  !  I  did  not  mean  to  de 
ceive  you  ;  do  not  think  so  unkindly  of  me."  Miss 
Campbell  poured  forth  her  words  with  passionate  earnest 
ness. 

"  I  love  you  !"  said  Wentworth,  with  the  vacant  look  of 
one  who  sees  the  hope  of  his  life,  just  as  he  had  grasped  it, 
vanish. 

''There  is  some  one  coming,"  said  Miss  Campbell, 
hastily;  "  forget  what  you  have  felt.  You  have  done  me 
a  great  honor  ;  I  shall  always  remember  it.  You  will  still 
think  kindly  of  me,  though  not  as  before,  do  promise  me  !'' 
Miss  Campbell  reached  out  her  hand  ;  Wentworth  took  it, 
mechanically,  and  with  the  same  look  turned  and  walked 
away. 

Through  the  long  hours  of  the  night,  now  slow,  now  fast, 
the  boy  walked  on.  The  flowers  which  a  few  hours  before 
had  blossomed  bright  around  him,  were  withered  and  dead; 
the  music  of  the  summer  breezes  had  changed  into  a  wail ; 
the  world,  which  love  had  filled  with  life,  had  become  a 
tomb.  At  length  the  boy's  steps  brought  him  back  again 
to  the  college.  As  he  passed  his  club-rooms  he  caught 


Fair  Harvard.  301 

snatches  of  the  songs  of  some  late  revellers  ;  their  merriment 
seemed  to  him  a  mockery,  but  a  wild  desire  seized  him  to 
drown  his  memory ;  he  turned  to  enter  the  door,  but  his 
pride  checked  him.  "It  is  cowardly  not  to  face  the 
enemy, "he  muttered  to  himself,  and  kept  on  his  way  to  his 
rooms. 

There  he  threw  himself  upon  the  bed,  and  tried  to  fall 
asleep.  Suddenly  he  sprang  up  wildly ;  the  words  of  Miss 
Campbell  to  her  cousin,  were  traced  in  fire  before  his  eyes. 

"It  would  not  do  him  much  harm ;  it  would  keep  the 
real  disease  from  being  too  violent." 

' '  She  must  have  made  one  love  her  for  her  amusement, " 
he  cried  fiercely,  and  sank  down  in  despair. 

It  is  not  the  loss  of  a  woman  he  loves,  but  the  loss  of  re 
spect  for  her,  that  most  deeply  sears  the  heart  of  a  man  of 
honor. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

"Tabuit  in  calido  vulnere  mucro  tener." 

|  HE  next  day  and  for  many  days  afterward, 
Wentworth  was  subject  to  fits  of  passion,  fol 
lowed  by  long  hours  of  listlessness.  The  de 
parture  of  his  friends  excited  in  him  no  feelings  of  regret. 
A  few  days  after  Class  Day,  he  received  letters  from  Bowyer 
and  Ayres,  stating  that  they  had  gone  into  business  in  New 
York.  A  week  later  came  one  of  a  different  tenor  from 
Rakeman,  announcing  his  engagement  to  Miss  Leigh. 
The  same  day  he  received  an  invitation  from  his  cousin  to 
visit  Newport :  the  postscript  added,  what  Wentworth  well 
knew  before,  that  his  old  flame,  Miss  Campbell,  was  stay 
ing  with  Mrs.  Morris. 

Van,  who  had  remained  in  Cambridge  after  most  of  his 
class  had  gone,  had  guessed  his  friend's  trouble,  but  had 
been  silent  about  it.  The  day  before  he  went  to  New  York, 
however,  whence  he  was  soon  to  sail  for  Europe,  the  two 
friends  sat  late  into  the  night,  talking  over  their  college- 
days.  As  the  hours  wore  on,  they  grew  confidential,  and 
Van  at  length  spoke  to  Wentworth  about  what  he  knew  lay 
nearest  his  friend's  heart. 


Fair  Harvard.  303 

"Promise  me,"  he  said,  "promise  me,  Wentworth,  that 
you  will  not  let  your  disappointment  drive  you  into  dissi 
pation.  If  our  love  for  a  woman  makes  us  base,  we  learn 
in  a  short  time  to  hate  both  her  and  ourselves.  The  suf 
fering  that  comes  from  the  loss  of  what  we  love,  is  a  pleas 
ure  compared  with  that  which  springs  from  remorse. 

"  We  rakes,"  he  added  with  a  bitter  laugh,  "  make  the 
best  preachers  when  we  read  the  real  lessons  of  our  lives. 
Truth  is  found  in  the  dregs  of  the  cup  of  pleasure,  as  often 
as  in  the  temple,  only  it  is  found  there  dead,  for  us.  The 
next  best  thing  to  being  good  ourselves,  though,"  a  look  of 
noble  generosity  brightened  on  the  boy's  face,  "is  to  aid 
others  to  be  good. " 

"Van!  Van!"  cried  Wentworth,  "your  unselfishness 
makes  me  forget  myself.  Don't  talk  so  wildly ;  you  are 
not  going  to  abandon  yourself  to  waste  and  decay ;  you 
are  generous  and  ambitious  and  full  of  talents.  Because 
you  find  some  sins  in  your  past  life — because  you  find 
some  traitors  in  your  camp,  you  do  not  think  of  surrender; 
hang  them  up  in  sight  of  the  army,  and  fight  on  all  the 
more  bravely.  Promise  me,  Van,  in  the  battle  of  life,  into 
which  we  are  entering,  you  will  be  true  to  yourself :  I  shall 
thank  you  more  for  that  example,  than  for  all  your  words, 
however  kind." 

"I  will  try,"  said  Van  humbly. 

"We  will  both  try, "said  his  friend,  grasping  him  by  the 
hand. 

A  happy  smile  played  over  Van's  face  that  evening  ;  the 
sneer  disappeared  from  his  lips  ;  the  innocence  of  his  boy 


304  Fair  Harvard. 

hood  shone  in  his   looks  and  spoke  in  his  words ;  Went- 
worth  had  never  loved  his  friend  so  well. 

The  next  morning  they  parted  with  many  assurances  of 
affection.  When  Wentworth  returned  to  his  rooms  alone,  the 
passion  he  had  thought  half  conquered,  again  broke  out. 
An  easy  way  to  forget  anything,  philosophy  teaches,  is  to 
throw  our  minds  into  something  else.  The  knowledge  of 
relatives  is  one,  and  the  direct  attempt  to  banish  an  object 
from  our  thoughts,  only  chains  it  there  the  more  closely. 
The  only  difficulty  about  this  rule  lies  in  its  practice. 
Wentworth  opened  his  books  and  tried  to  work  on  his 
Commencement  part,  but  without  success.  Each  word 
that  spoke  of  beauty  or  grace  summoned  before  his  eyes  by 
a  fatal  magic,  the  vision  of  the  woman  he  loved. 

"I  wonder,"  he  thought,  "if  the  dimples  on  her 
hand  look  as  pretty  as  ever.  Does  she  still  wear  that  coral 
sphinx  on  her  neck  ?  What  a  sweet  smile  she  has  !  Is  she 
playing  with  her  cousins  ?  How  little  children  love  her ! 
Each  word  she  speaks  to  them  seems  a  caress.  Who  is  en 
joying  her  smiles  now?  Curse  my  fate  !  I  will  not  waste 
my  life  in  this  maudlin  way.  That  she  should  dare  so  to 
play  with  the  souls  of  men  !  I  will  see  her  once  more  ;  I 

will  tell  her  I  no  longer  love  her,  that  I but  why  do  I 

fret  ?  Happiness  !  happiness  !  a  thorn,  a  tooth,  a  woman 
can  destroy  it  !  Knowledge  !  Growth  !  Strength  !  There 
is  something  noble  in  these.  I  will  see  her  once  more  and 
end  it." 

With  this  determination  our  hero  took  the  cars  for 
Newport. 


Fair  Harvard.  305 

What  is  the  use  of  these  last  interviews  of  disappointed 
aspirants?  Are  they  truces  under  which  the  defeated  party 
carries  off  his  wounded  sentiments  ?  Are  they  funeral  cere 
monies  at  which  love  is  decently  interred  ?  They  differ  from 
the  latter  in  one  point  at  least.  Truth,  whom  death  strikes 
dumb,  here  has  a  voice  potential ;  she  breaks  through  the 
veils  of  convention,  opens  her  ill-favored  mouth,  and  saws 
the  air  with  her  bony  hand.  Pretty  maidens,  who  count 
with  pleasure  each  new  scalp  added  to  your  girdles,  beware 
of  these  last  meetings  ;  they  are  devices  of  the  enemy  ;  they 
are  tricks  to  rob  you  of  your  spoils.  When  you  have 
once  refused  a  man,  never  see  him  alone  ;  he  has  nothing 
further  to  lose ;  you  have  nothing  more  to  win. 

\Ventworth,  on  reaching  Newport,  called  upon  Miss 
Campbell,  and  invited  her  to  walk.  They  passed  along 
the  path  by  the  rocks,  over  which  a  year  ago  they  had  often 
climbed  together.  Miss  Campbell,  as  they  went  on,  was 
struck  with  the  change  in  her  companion's  appearance, 
which  the  last  few  weeks  had  made.  Went  worth  had  grown 
from  a  boy  into  a  man.  His  struggle  to  master  his  passion 
had  given  him  strength  and  self-command  ;  his  face  looked 
earnest  and  proud ;  his  manner  wore  a  grace  and  ease 
which  were  far  from  unattractive.  After  a  short  walk  they 
reached  a  natural  seat  in  the  rocks,  where  \Ventworth  the 
summer  before  had  passed  many  a  pleasant  hour  reading 
to  Miss  Campbell. 

She  now  complained  of  being  tired,  and  seating 
herself  in  the  familiar  seat,  looked  at  the  cloth  of  gold 


306  Fair  Harvard. 

which  the  setting  sun  was  spreading  over  the  ocean.  At 
their  feet  the  waves  were  rolling  in  grandly,  and  dashing 
their  foam  high  up  against  the  rocks.  A  few  rods  from  the 
shore,  a  jagged  pyramidal  rock  rose  above  the  water's  level. 
Each  wave,  as  it  rolled  inland,  hung  over  the  peak  of  the 
rock,  broke,  and  flowed  down  in  a  thousand  streamlets. 
A  small  rainbow  at  the  same  moment  rose  above  the  rock's 
summit,  hovered  over  it,  and  disappeared. 

"How  exquisite!"  said  Miss  Campbell,  pointing  out 
the  rainbow  to  Wentworth.  "  It  is  the  soul  rising  from  the 
body's  death-bed. '" 

Wentworth's  eyes  glanced  at  the  rainbow  and  returned  to 
feed,  against  his  will,  upon  the  lustrous  beauty  of  the 
woman  before  him.  His  thoughts,  despite  his  struggles, 
became  captive  to  its  spell.  She  was  seated  \\lih  her  face 
half  turned  from  him.  Her  rich  dark  hair  flowed  back  in 
waves  from  her  forehead.  The  roses  of  the  setting  sun 
could  not  vie  with  her  cheeks.  Her  fair  neck  and  breast 
breathed  forth  a  power  that  brought  Nature  enchanted  to 
her  feet.  Half  Cleopatra,  half  Madonna,  the  passion  and 
purity  of  earth  and  heaven  mingled  in  her  beauty.  Her 
form  carved  in  colorless  marble  would  have  comm-anded 
worship  ;  instinct  with  glowing  life,  one  touch  of  her  hand 
seemed  to  have  power  to  call  back  the  dead  to  love. 

"She  seems  the  embodiment  of  love  and  truth,"  thought 
Wentworth.  "How  can  she  be  so  false?" 

"You  are  very  beautiful,'"  he  said,  aloud,  careless  of 
offence  ;  the  words  came  so  naturally  from  his  heart  that 
they  scarcely  seemed  amiss. 


Fair  Harvard.  307 

'•I  wonder,"  thought  Miss  Campbell,  "why  I  did 
not  love  him.  He  is  handsome,  clever,  and  full  of  ardor  ! 
Shall  I  ever  meat  another  whom  I  shall  like  better  ?  If  he 
had  not  been  so  violent.  A  man  should  try  to  make  a  wo 
man  love  him,  and  not  merely  to  show  his  love  for  her. 
I  suppose  I  shall  repent  when  it  is  too  late." 

"  I  once  loved  you,"  said  Wentworth,  breaking  from  the 
spell  of  the  girl's  beauty.  Miss  Campbell  gave  a  start  of 
surprise.  "I  once  loved  you,  but  I  did  not  come  to  tell 
you  that.  Loved  you  !"  he  cried,  his  passion  mastering 
him  ;  "I  would  have  given  my  life  to  your  service  without 
return  !  Would  that  I  might  have  gathered  its  years  into  a 
moment  of  devotion  to  you,  and  then  died.  How  much 
wiser,  having  climbed  to  the  height  of  life  to  throw  oneself 
headlong,  than  to  creep  slowly  down  to  death. " 

Wentworth  checked  himself  by  a  great  effort :  Miss 
Campbell  could  not  help  feeling  a  thrill  of  admiration  for 
him  as  he  uttered  his  wild  words. 

"I  talk  like  an  actor,''  he  continued,  contemptuously. 
"I  did  not  come  to  tell  you  these  things — I  should  not 
have  minded  it  in  another,  but  you,  who  held  the  key  of 
my  destiny  !  that  you  should  so  use  your  power  !  that  you 
should  sacrifice  my  life  to  flatter  your  vanity ! — that  you 
should  so  degrade  what  is  noblest  in  the  human  soul  ! 
that  you  should  use  to  feed  the  paltriest  of  vices  the  fuel 
that  should  burn  at  the  very  altar  of  God  !  Enough  of 
this  ! — I  came  to  tell  you  that  I  no  longer  care  for  you : 
that  if  you  would  win  even  the  friendship  of  a  man  of 
honor,  you  must  first  gain  his  respect. " 


308  Fair  Harvard. 

Miss  Campbell,  as  Wentworth  poured  out  these  re 
proaches,  tried  to  speak,  but  her  words  failed  her.  She 
reached  out  her  hand  to  him  imploringly,  but  he  did  not 
heed  it.  As  he  uttered  his  last  cruel  words  she  pressed  her 
hand  to  her  heart  and  uttered  a  cry  of  pain. 

"  You  are  unjust,  you  are  ungenerous,"  she  said,  speak 
ing  at  length  by  a  great  effort.  "I  never  meant  to  de 
ceive  you  ;  I  could  not  do  a  thing  so  contemptible.  It 
was  lonely  ;  I  wanted  you  to  be  my  friend.  If  I  wronged 
you,  I  can  but  humbly  beg  you  to  pardon  me."  The 
proud  girl  burst  into  tears,  and  buried  her  face  in  her 
hands. 

The  sight  of  her  grief,  recalled  Wentworth  to  his  senses. 
"Forgive  me!"  he  cried,  passionately.  "I  knew  not 
what  I  said.  My  love  for  you  has  made  me  beside  myself. 
It  was  my  wounded  vanity  that  spoke.  It  is  my  misfor 
tune,  not  your  fault,  that  you  did  not  love  me.  Tell  me  that 
you  forgive  me.  Though  I  love  you  more  than  all  the 
world  besides,  I  will  never  see  you  again." 

"Never  again  ;  Wentworth  ?"  The  girl  raised  her  head; 
a  smile  broke  through  her  tears ;  her  lips  quivered  with 
tenderness. 

"Darling!  I  will  never  leave  you!"  cried  her  happy 
lover,  and  caught  her  half  reluctant  in  his  arms,  and  set 
love's  sweet  seal  upon  his  vow. 

A  diviner  beauty  shone  from  the  girl's  fair  face ;  a  ten 
derer  light  beamed  from  her  sunny  eyes. 

"  Dearest !"  she  whispered, — the  magic  of  her  voice  un 
locked  the  gates  of  sense,  filled  the  air  with  visions  of 


Fair  Harvard.  309 

beauty,  and  called  over  the  laughing  waves  the  music  of 
heavenly  choirs — ''Dearest,  tell  me  again  that  you  love 
me."  She  sank  upon  lier  lover's  breast  transfigured. 

"Dearest!"  she  again  whispered,  "will  you  love  me 
always  as  now  ?" 

"Always,  darling,  always!  Would  that  now  were  for 
ever  !  Nay,  love,  I  would  give  my  hope  of  immortal  life 
to  win  this  moment  of  delight !" 

"Hush!   hush!"  the  girl   clung  closer   to   her   lover. 

"Not  such  love,  but  that  you  will  always  be  noble  and 
true  and — and  will  love  no  one  else  so  well." 

"  Eheufugaces. " 


THE   END. 


Hist  of  tfje 


OF 

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ILACKWELL.  STUDIES  IN  GENERAL  SCI 
ENCE.  By  Antoinette  Brown  Blackwell.  I2mo 
(uniform  with  Child's  "  Benedicite  ").  Cloth  extra, 

$2.25. 

"  The  writer,  evinces  admirable  gifts  both  as  a  student  and  thinker.  She  brings 
a  sincere  and  earnest  mind  to  the  investigation  of  truth." — N.  Y.  Tribune. 

"  The  idea  of  the  work  is  an  excellent  one,  and  it  is  ably  developed." — Boston 
Transcript. 

BLINDPITS— A  Novel.      [Reprinted   by  special   arrange 
ment  with  the  Edinburgh  publishers.]     i  vol.  I2mo,  $1.75. 

***  A  delightful  story,  which  everybody  will  like. 

"The  book  indicates  more  than  ordinary  genius,  and  we  recommend  it  unre 
servedly."  — Buffalo  Courier, 

]OLTE  (Amely).  MADAME  de  STAEL  ;  A  Histori 
cal  Novel :  translated  from  the  German  by  Theo. 
Johnson.  i6mo,  cloth  extra,  $1.50. 

\Putnairfs  European  Library."] 

"  One  of  the  best  historical  novels  which  has  appeared  for  a  long  time." — Illust. 
Zeitung. 

"Worthy  of  its  great  subject." — Familien-Journal. 

"  Every  chapter  brings  the  reader  in  contact  with  eminent  personages,  and  en 
tertains  him  in  the  most  agreeable  and  profitable  manner." — Europa. 

"  This  is  one  of  those  valuable  novels  that  combine  historical  and  biographical 
information  with  amusement." — Cincinnati  Chronicle. 

]RACE.     THE    NEW  WEST  ;  or,  California  in  1867 
and  '68.     By  Charles  L.  Brace,  Author  of  the  "  Races 
of    the    Old   World,"    "Home-Life    in    Germany," 
"Hungary  in  1851,"  etc.     I2mo,  cloth,  $1.75. 

"We  iccommend  it  as  the  most  readable  and  comprehensive  book  published  on 
the  general  theme  of  California." — N.  Y.  Times. 

|RYANT.  LETTERS  OF  A  TRAVELLER.  By 
Wm.  Cullen  Bryant.  New  edition.  I2mo,  cloth. 

—  LETTERS  FROM  THE  EAST.     Notes  of  a  Visit 
to  Egypt  and  Palestine.     I2mo,  cloth,  $1.50. 

—  The  Same.     ILLUSTRATED  EDITION.    With  fine  engra 
vings  on  steel.     I2mo,  cloth  extra,  $3. 


G.  P.  Putnam  &  Sou. 


IAVE.  THE  CAVE  METHOD  OF  LEARNING 
TO  DRAW  FROM  MEMORY.  By  Madame  E. 
Cave.  From  4th  Parisian  edition.  i2mo,  cloth,  $i. 

*£*  This  is  the  only  method  of  drawing  ivhich  really  teaches  anything.  In 
publishing  the  remarkable  treatise,  in  which  she  unfolds,  with  surpassing  interest, 
the  results  of  her  observations  upon  the  teaching  of  drawing,  and  the  ingenious 
methods  she  applies,  Madame  Cave  ....  renders  invaluable  service  to  all  who  have 
marked  out  for  themselves  a  career  of  Art." — Kxtrac t  from  a  lo ng  review  in 
the  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes,  written  by  Delacroix. 

"  It  is  interesting  and  valuable." — D.  HUNTINGTON,  Prcst.  Nat.  Acad. 

"  Should  be  used  by  every  teacher  of  Drawing  in  America." — City  Itcjn,  Fhila. 

"  \Ve  wish  that  Madame  Cave  had  published  this  work  half  a  century  ago,  that 
we  might  have  been  instructed  in  this  enviable  accomplishment." — Harper's  Mag. 

CAVE.     THE  CAVE  METHOD   OF  TEACHING  CO 
LOR.     I2mo,  cloth,  $i. 

*:]:*  This  work  was  referred,  by  the  French  Minister  of  Public  Instruction,  to  a 
commission  of  ten  eminent  artists  and  officials,  whose  report,  written  by  M.  Dela 
croix,  was  unanimously  adopted,  endorsing  and  approving  the  work.  The  Minis 
ter,  thereupon,  by  a  decree,  authorized  the  use  of  it  in  the  French  Normal  schools. 

G.  P.  PUTNAM  &  SON  have  also  just  received  from  Paris 
specimens  of  the  MATERIALS  used  in  this  method,  which  they 
can  supply  to  order.  I.  The  GAUZES  (framed)  are  now  ready. 
Price  $i  each.  With  discount  to  teachers.  II.  The  Stand 
for  the  gauze.  Price  $1.50.  III.  MJETHODE  CAVJE,  pour 
apprendre  a  dessiner  juste  et  de  memoire  d'apres  les  principes 
d'Albert  Durer  et  de  Leonardo  da  Vinci.  Approved  by  the 
Minister  of  Public  Instruction,  and  by  Messrs.  Delacroix,  H. 
Vernet,  etc.  In  8  series,  folio,  paper  covers.  Price  $2.25  each. 

N.B. — The  Crayons,  Paper,  and  other  articles  mentioned  in 
the  Cave*  Method  may  be  obtained  of  any  dealer  in  Artist's 
Materials.  Samples  of  the  French  Articles  may  be  seen  at 
56 r  Broadway. 

[HADBOURNE.      NATURAL    THEOLOGY;    or, 

Nature  and  the  Bible  from  the  same  Author.  Lec 
tures  delivered  before  the  Lowell  Institute,  Boston. 
By  P.  A.  Chadbourne,  A.M.,  M.D.,  President  of  University 
of  Wisconsin.  I2ino,  cloth,  $2.  Student's  edition,  $1.75. 

"This  is  a  valuable  contribution  to  current  literature,  and  will  be  found  adapted 
to  the  use  of  the  class-room  in  college,  and  to  die  investigations  of  private  students." 
— Richmond  Christian  Adv. 

"  The  warm,  fresh  breath  of  pure  and  fervent  religion  pervades  these  eloquent 
pages." — Am.  Baptist. 

"  Prof.  Chadbourne' s  book  is  among  the  few  metaphysical  ones  now  published, 
which,  once  taken  up,  cannot  be  laid  aside  unread.  It  is  written  in  a  perspicuous, 
animated  style,  combining  depth  of  thought  and  grace  of  diction,  with  a  total  ab 
sence  of  ambitious  display." — Washington  National  Republic. 

"  In  diction,  method,  and  spirit,  the  volume  is  attractive  and  distinctive  to  a 
rare  degree." — Boston  Traveller. 


Publications  of 


[HILD'S  BENEDICITE  ;  or,  Illustration  of  the  Pow 
er,  Wisdom,  and  Goodness  of  God,  as  manifested  in 
His  Works.  By  G.  Chaplin  Child,  M.D.  From  the 

London  edition  of  John  Murray.     With  an  Introductory 

Note  by  Henry  G.  Weston,  D.D.,  of  New  York.     I  vol. 

I2mo.      Elegantly  printed   on   tinted   paper,   cloth  extra, 

bevelled,  $2  ;  mor.  ext.,  $4.50. 

CHIEF  CONTENTS. 


Winter  and  Summer.          I      Wells. 

Nights  and  Days.  Seas  and  Floods. 


Introduction. 

The  Heavens. 

The  Sun  and  Moon. 

The  Planets.  Lightning  and  Clouds. 

The  Stars.  Showers  and  Dew. 


Light  and  Darkness. 


The  Winds. 
Fire  and  Heat. 
Frost  and  Snow,  etc. 


"The  most  admirable  popular  treatise  of  natural  theology.  It  is  no  extravagance 
to  say  that  we  have  never  read  a  more  charming  book,  or  one  which  we  can  recom 
mend  more  confidently  to  our  readers  with  the  assurance  that  it  will  aid  them,  as 
none  that  we  know  of  can  do,  to 

'  Look  through  Nature  up  to  Nature's  God.' 

Every  cltrgyman  would  do  well  particularly  to  study  this  book.  For  the  rest,  the 
handsome  volume  is  delightful  in  appearance,  and  is  one  of  the  most  creditable  spe 
cimens  of  American  book-making  that  has  come  from  the  Riverside  Press." — Kowni 
Table,  Ar.  Y.,  June  i. 

|LARKE.     PORTIA,  and  other  Tales  of  Shakespeare's 
Heroines.     By  Mrs.  Covvden  Clarke,  author  of  the 
Concordance    to    Shakespeare.      With    engravings. 
I2mo,  cloth  extra,  $2.50  ;  gilt  edges,  $3. 

%*  An  attractive  book,  especially  for  girls. 

JOOPER.  RURAL  HOURS.  By  a  Lady.  (Miss 
Susan  Fenimore  Cooper.)  New  Edition,  with  a  new 
Introductory  Chapter.  I  vol.  i2mo,  $2.50. 

"  One  of  the  most  interesting  volumes  of  the  day,  displaying  powers  of  mind  of 
a  high  order." — Mrs.  HALE'S  IVoman^s  Record. 

"  An  admirable  portraiture  of  American  out-door  life,  just  as  it  is." — Prof.  Hart. 

"  A  very  pleasant  book — the  result  of  the  combined  effort  of  good  sense  and  good 
feeling,  an  observing  mind,  and  a  real,  honest,  unaffected  appreciation  of  the  count 
less  minor  beauties  that  Nature  exhibits  to  her  assiduous  lovers." — N.  Y.  Albion. 

[RAVEN  (Mme.  Aug.).    ANNE  SEVERIN  :  A  Story 
translated  from  the  French.     i6mo,  $1.50. 
\_Putnain'ls  European  Library.'] 

***  "  The  Sister's  Story,"  by  the  same  author,  has  been  warmly  and  generally 
eulogized  as  a  book  of  remarkably  pure  and  elevated  character. 

"  By  her  great  success,  Mrs.  Craven  has  larger  power  for  good  than  perhaps  any 
other  writer  in  France."— Pall  Mall  Gazette. 


G.  P.  Putnam   &  Son.  5 

JAVIS.  A  STRANDED  SHIP.  A  Story  of  Sea  and 
Shore.  By  L.  Clarke  Davis.  i6mo,  cloth,  80  cts. ; 
paper,  50  cts. 

"  It  is  told  with  exceeding  grace,  and  portrays  the  lives  of  two  unhappy  men 
rith  remarkable  skill  and  insight  into  human  nature." — Phila  City  Item. 

IENISON.  ASTRONOMY  WITHOUT  MATHE 
MATICS.  By  Edmund  Beckett  Denison,  LL.D., 
Q.C.,  F.R.A.S.  From  the  dth  London  edition. 

Edited,  with  corrections  and  notes,  by  Pliny  E.  Chase,  A.M. 

I2mo,  cloth,  $1.75. 

|E  VERE.  WONDERS  OF  THE  DEEP.  By  M. 
Schele  de  Vere,  Professor  of  Modern  Languages  in 
the  University  of  Virginia.  121110,  cloth,  $1.75. 

CHIEF  CONTENTS. 


Pearls. 

Corals. 

Facts  and  Tables. 

Mercury. 


Oysters. 

Light-house  Stories,  etc. 
Odd  Fish. 
&c.,  &c. 


(INGELSTEDT  (Franz).  THE  AMAZON.  Transla 
ted  from  the  German  by  J.  M.  Hart.  161110,  cloth 
extra,  $1.50. 

[Putnam's  European  Library^ 

"  Full  of  scintillations  of  wit,  .  .  .  sparkles  throughout  with  vivacity  and  fan 
ciful  humor." — Leipsic  Blatter. 

"Unquestionably  the  most  charming  novel  that  has  appeared  for  some  time." — 
"  Ueber  Land  und  Mecr"  Stuttgart. 

JGLESTON    (Geo.   W.).     THE    SEARCH    AFTER 
TRUTH.     Addressed  to  Young   Men.     Dedicated 
to  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations.     i6mo, 
cloth,  $1.25. 

lARRAGUT'S  CRUISE  IN  EUROPE.— See  Mont 
gomery. 


Publications  of 


[AY.  A  NEW  SYSTEM  OF  GEOGRAPHY.  By 
Hon.  Theo.  S.  Fay.  With  finely  executed  Maps. 
For  Families  and  for  Students.  I2mo,  with  Atlas, 
quarto.  Cloth  extra,  $4.25.  School  edition,  $3.75.  [See 
separate  Circular.] 

*#*  An  introductory  work  for  young  classes  is  in  preparation. 
These  volumes  have  been  prepared  with  the  greatest  care,  and  have  cost  several 
years  of  labor,  under  the  suggestions  and  supervisions  of  Humboldt,  Ritter,  and 
the  most  eminent  Geographers  and  Astronomers  of  Europe.     They  are  on  a  new 
plan,  and  the  maps  and  illustrations  are  admirably  executed  at  large  expense. 
OFFICE  OF  THE  CLERK  OF  THE  BOARD  OF  EDUCATION,  \ 
Cor.  of  Grand  and  Elm  Sts.  f 

New  York,  March  oth,  1869. 
GEORGE  P.  PUTNAM,  ESQ.  : 

Dear  Sir  : — "Fay's  Geography  for  Schools"  has  been  added  to  the  list  of  books 
furnished  to  the  schools  under  the  control  of  the  Board  of  Education. 

Yours,  &c., 

THOS.  BOESE, 

ClerJc  of  Board  of  Kditcation. 

%*  It  is  used  in  Vassar  College  by  about  one  hundred  pupils. 
"The  Great  Outline  of  Geography  can  neither  be  dispensed  with   nor  super 
seded." — HENRY,  B.  TAPPAN,  late  President  of  the  Michigan  University. 
"  It  makes  Geography  almost  a  new  science."— Henry  IV.  Bellows,  D.D. 
"  Comprehensive  and  complete." — N.  Y.  Nation. 
"  It  gives  life  to  what  seemed  before  a  dead  science." 

'The  book  improves  upon  acquaintance.     My  classes  are  much  interested,  and 
teaching  is  a  pleasure." — E.  A.  GIBBONS,  Harvard  Roo)ns,  N.  Y. 

FAY.  A  new  System  of  Astronomy.  By  Hon.  Theo.  S. 
Fay.  Richly  illustrated.  For  Families  and  for  Students. 
I2mo,  with  Atlas,  quarto.  (Li  press.) 

FAY.  NORMAN  LESLIE.  A  New  York  Story.  By 
Hon.  Theo.  S.  Fay.  Price  $1.75. 

"  It  affords  a  faithful  picture  of  old  New  York,  and  it  is  a  readable  and  meri 
torious  work." — N.  Y.  Citizen. 

IELD.    GREEN-HOUSES  AND  GREEN-HOUSE 
PLANTS.     By  M.    Field.     With    Introduction   by 
William  Cullen  Bryant.    With  Illustrations.     I2mo, 
cloth,  75  cents. 


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